LGT Group Foundation Has $18.51 Million Stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

LGT Group Foundation lifted its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 55,615 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,741 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation owned about 0.09% of Waters worth $18,507,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 1.4% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,520,629 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $965,392,000 after purchasing an additional 48,740 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Waters by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,092,459 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $299,563,000 after buying an additional 32,059 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 129.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 973,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $322,017,000 after buying an additional 550,112 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 832,895 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $228,388,000 after acquiring an additional 212,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in shares of Waters by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 582,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $191,628,000 after acquiring an additional 10,550 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In other news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of Waters stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total transaction of $177,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $799,965. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on WAT shares. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $298.67.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT traded down $4.55 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $311.37. 73,367 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 404,402. Waters Co. has a twelve month low of $231.90 and a twelve month high of $363.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.12, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $334.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $308.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.56 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $819.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $815.50 million. Waters had a net margin of 21.72% and a return on equity of 81.30%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.84 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

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.