Waters (NYSE:WAT) Shares Gap Up to $299.23

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $299.23, but opened at $309.99. Waters shares last traded at $308.34, with a volume of 54,170 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAT has been the subject of a number of research reports. 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 note on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on 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 given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $298.67.

Waters Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $335.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $306.34. The company has a market cap of $18.57 billion, a PE ratio of 27.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $819.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $815.50 million. Waters had a return on equity of 81.30% and a net margin of 21.72%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.84 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Waters

In related news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,250 shares in the company, valued at $799,965. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.82% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Waters by 9.7% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 55,889 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,325,000 after acquiring an additional 4,936 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 295.9% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 127,879 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $42,102,000 after purchasing an additional 95,577 shares in the last quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc. now owns 227,250 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $74,818,000 after purchasing an additional 41,638 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 129.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 973,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $322,017,000 after purchasing an additional 550,112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 32.4% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 13,066 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,302,000 after purchasing an additional 3,194 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

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.