Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Invests $4.36 Million in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 11,762 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $4,363,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waters by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,587 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,331,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Waters by 34.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 159,995 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $57,579,000 after purchasing an additional 41,339 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its position in Waters by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,704 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $632,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in Waters by 13.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 2,578 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 421,691 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $156,439,000 after buying an additional 27,801 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Waters Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:WAT traded up $2.53 during trading on Friday, reaching $365.75. The stock had a trading volume of 864,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 440,291. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $21.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.15, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $390.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $371.28. Waters Co. has a one year low of $279.24 and a one year high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. As a group, research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WAT. Barclays upgraded Waters from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $360.00 to $415.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank upgraded Waters from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Waters from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $430.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $391.07.

Waters Company 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.