Eastern Bank Acquires New Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 300 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $111,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Waters by 1.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,577,733 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $927,700,000 after buying an additional 49,194 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,416,683 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $508,123,000 after acquiring an additional 16,703 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 885,593 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $318,717,000 after acquiring an additional 6,256 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 659,539 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $219,811,000 after acquiring an additional 6,647 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Waters by 70.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 656,019 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $236,095,000 after purchasing an additional 271,804 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Trading Up 1.2 %

WAT opened at $404.70 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.62, a P/E/G ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $377.07 and its 200-day moving average is $347.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. Waters Co. has a 52-week low of $279.24 and a 52-week high of $406.78.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $430.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $384.71.

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.