Waters (NYSE:WAT) Upgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein to “Outperform” Rating

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a report issued on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has $430.00 price objective on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on WAT. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Waters from $335.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Cfra set a $389.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $355.00 to $415.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $384.71.

Waters Trading Up 1.8 %

WAT opened at $380.96 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.62 billion, a PE ratio of 36.35, a P/E/G ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.38. Waters has a 12-month low of $279.24 and a 12-month high of $397.02. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $376.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $345.11.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $712.99 million. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.84 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Waters will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Waters in the second quarter worth $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Waters during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in Waters by 235.7% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the 2nd quarter worth about $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.