Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 120,167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,130 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $44,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisory Alpha LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 worth $3,565,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Waters by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 353 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $127,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Waters by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $199,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Bank of America cut their price target on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Waters from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $397.25.

Waters Price Performance

WAT stock opened at $314.30 on Friday. Waters Co. has a 52 week low of $279.24 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $370.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $372.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%. Analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.