Waters (NYSE:WAT) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $397.02 and last traded at $389.97, with a volume of 49293 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $390.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Waters from $335.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Waters from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $365.85.

Waters Trading Down 1.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.25, a P/E/G ratio of 7.03 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $364.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $335.11.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.25. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The firm had revenue of $740.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $712.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waters

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 310.2% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,635 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,596,000 after buying an additional 3,505 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 8.7% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 11.4% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,124 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $326,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 4.3% during the second quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 3,579 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 3.0% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,728 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,081,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.