Ethic Inc. Grows Stake in Waters Corporation $WAT

Ethic Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,175 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 871 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $3,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Waters by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,272,252 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,680,334,000 after purchasing an additional 173,584 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in Waters by 15.7% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,070,671 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,131,757,000 after purchasing an additional 416,669 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Waters by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,066,482 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $761,643,000 after purchasing an additional 123,215 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Waters by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,112,128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $409,897,000 after purchasing an additional 136,396 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Waters by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 739,630 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $272,605,000 after purchasing an additional 15,563 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of WAT stock opened at $358.79 on Friday. Waters Corporation has a 1-year low of $275.05 and a 1-year high of $423.56. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $311.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $323.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The company has a market cap of $21.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.04.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 19th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter. Waters had a return on equity of 38.60% and a net margin of 21.71%.The firm had revenue of $608.55 million for the quarter. On average, research analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on WAT. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Redburn Partners set a $390.00 price target on Waters in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $315.00 price target on Waters and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on Waters in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $376.80.

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.