Waters (NYSE:WAT) Raised to Sector Outperform at Scotiabank

Scotiabank upgraded shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) from a sector perform rating to a sector outperform rating in a research note released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $450.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock, up from their previous target price of $430.00.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Barclays raised Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $360.00 to $415.00 in a research note on Monday. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Cfra set a $389.00 price objective on Waters in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $390.40.

Waters Price Performance

Waters stock opened at $379.45 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $22.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.21, a PEG ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.01. 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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $390.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $363.96. Waters has a 52 week low of $279.24 and a 52 week high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 49.93% and a net margin of 21.43%. On average, research analysts forecast that Waters will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its position in Waters by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Waters by 2.4% in the third quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 1,198 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 966 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in Waters by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 9,610 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,565,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Waters by 3.8% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 851 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

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.