Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Shares Sold by Nordea Investment Management AB

Nordea Investment Management AB decreased its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 13.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 177,495 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 27,015 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB owned 0.30% of Waters worth $66,136,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in Waters during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Waters in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the second quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 669.2% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 200 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of WAT stock traded down $3.31 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $373.72. 452,561 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 335,492. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $375.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $344.91. The firm has a market cap of $22.19 billion, a PE ratio of 35.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.38. Waters Co. has a 1-year low of $279.24 and a 1-year high of $397.02.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.25. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. The company had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $712.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.84 earnings per share. Waters's quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WAT. Barclays raised their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Cfra set a $389.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $379.71.

About Waters

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.