Avestar Capital LLC Buys New Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Avestar Capital LLC purchased a new position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 700 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $260,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Waters during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 235.7% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the third quarter valued at $35,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its stake in Waters by 63.2% in the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 186 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE:WAT opened at $369.71 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $389.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $364.55. Waters Co. has a fifty-two week low of $279.24 and a fifty-two week high of $423.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.28, a P/E/G ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 2.02.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $390.40.

Waters 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.