EFG Asset Management North America Corp. Decreases Stake in Waters Corporation $WAT

EFG Asset Management North America Corp. decreased its holdings in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 35.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,499 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,362 shares during the quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp.’s holdings in Waters were worth $873,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,126 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 2.9% in the second quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,511 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its holdings in Waters by 1.8% during the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 16,897 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,898,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Tredje AP fonden grew its position in Waters by 12.0% during the second quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 5,158 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,800,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the period. Finally, TIAA Trust National Association grew its position in Waters by 161.6% during the second quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 2,598 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $907,000 after buying an additional 1,605 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $385.00 price target on shares of Waters and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector outperform” rating and issued a $465.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research note on Friday, July 11th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Waters from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $390.00 price target on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Waters currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $381.57.

Waters Price Performance

WAT stock opened at $372.09 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $320.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $325.41. The firm has a market cap of $22.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.55, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.75. Waters Corporation has a 1 year low of $275.05 and a 1 year high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $608.55 million during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.