700 Shares in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Bought by Avestar Capital LLC

Avestar Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 700 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $260,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Waters in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Waters in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in Waters by 235.7% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its stake in shares of Waters by 63.2% in the third quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 186 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waters Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WAT traded up $1.01 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $377.30. 544,410 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 462,367. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.40 billion, a PE ratio of 35.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.01. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $389.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $365.09. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 12.88 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Scotiabank upgraded Waters from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised Waters from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $390.40.

Waters Profile

Waters Corporation provides analytical workflow solutions in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Waters and TA. The company designs, manufactures, sells, and services high and ultra-performance liquid chromatography, as well as mass spectrometry (MS) technology systems and support products, including chromatography columns, other consumable products, and post-warranty service plans.