OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd Sells 13,526 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd lessened its holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 13.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 87,780 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 13,526 shares during the quarter. Waters comprises 0.9% of OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd owned approximately 0.15% of Waters worth $31,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Waters by 4.3% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 443,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $152,664,000 after purchasing an additional 18,274 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Waters in the first quarter worth approximately $10,106,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Waters by 67.5% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 10,382 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $3,574,000 after acquiring an additional 4,184 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Waters by 96.8% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 868 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 427 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Waters by 61.6% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,584 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,267,000 after acquiring an additional 2,509 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Waters Price Performance

NYSE WAT traded up $1.15 on Tuesday, reaching $381.89. The company had a trading volume of 151,713 shares, compared to its average volume of 431,259. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $249.34 and a 12 month high of $393.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.68 billion, a PE ratio of 36.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.03 and a beta of 0.97. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $347.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $328.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The business had revenue of $740.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $712.99 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.84 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cfra set a $389.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Waters from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $365.85.

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.