Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Increases Stock Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 8.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,798 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 1,830 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Waters were worth $9,200,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WAT. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 235.7% in the fourth 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. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 129.3% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 54.3% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at about $63,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Waters Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE WAT traded down $5.09 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $368.21. 456,859 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 440,544. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $423.56. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $389.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $372.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.88 billion, a PE ratio of 34.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00.

Remove Ads

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $430.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank raised shares of Waters from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their price target for the company from $430.00 to $450.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently 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.