Savant Capital LLC Acquires 63 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Savant Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,704 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $632,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 235.7% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lifted its stake in Waters by 63.2% in the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 186 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Down 2.5 %

WAT stock opened at $369.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.28, a PEG ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.01. Waters Co. has a 1-year low of $279.24 and a 1-year high of $423.56. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $389.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $364.55.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the topic of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upgraded Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $390.40.

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.