JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Waters (NYSE:WAT) Stock Price

Waters (NYSE:WAT) had its price objective raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $340.00 to $380.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Waters to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Cfra set a $389.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $365.85.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of WAT opened at $386.17 on Monday. Waters has a 1-year low of $246.35 and a 1-year high of $393.38. The company has a market cap of $22.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.85, a PEG ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $345.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $327.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.25. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The firm had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $712.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.84 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Waters will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waters

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Waters in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Waters by 190.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its position in Waters by 19,900.0% during the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 200 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. 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.