2,139 Shares in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Bought by Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C

Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C acquired a new position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,139 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $621,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. bought a new position in Waters in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,773,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter valued at about $962,000. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 2,134.3% in the first quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 5,921 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,038,000 after buying an additional 5,656 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Waters by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,837,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,251,163,000 after buying an additional 64,525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Waters by 27.1% during the fourth quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC now owns 187,483 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $61,725,000 after acquiring an additional 39,954 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAT traded up $1.65 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $357.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 649,570 shares, compared to its average volume of 427,122. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $332.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $324.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.42. Waters Co. has a fifty-two week low of $231.90 and a fifty-two week high of $367.21. The company has a market capitalization of $21.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.91, a P/E/G ratio of 5.96 and a beta of 0.95.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 56.81%. The company had revenue of $709.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $700.09 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.80 earnings per share. Waters's quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Waters to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $318.50.

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.