Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 271,804 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 70.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 656,019 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 271,804 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 1.10% of Waters worth $236,095,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the second quarter worth $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 190.2% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 119 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waters during the second quarter worth about $59,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Trading Up 2.1 %

Waters stock traded up $7.53 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $368.16. The company had a trading volume of 1,737,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 447,060. 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 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $397.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $367.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $337.42. The firm has a market cap of $21.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.13, a P/E/G ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.01.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on WAT shares. Cfra set a $389.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $375.85.

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.