Lafayette Investments Inc. Sells 149 Shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT)

Lafayette Investments Inc. lessened its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,300 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 149 shares during the quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $3,059,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Waters by 129.3% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 5,200.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 54.3% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the subject of several research reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $374.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 7th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Waters from $415.00 to $360.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Waters from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $388.00.

Waters Trading Up 1.6%

WAT opened at $355.52 on Friday. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $279.24 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The company has a market capitalization of $21.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.26, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $346.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $365.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.03. Waters had a return on equity of 41.70% and a net margin of 22.02%. The company had revenue of $661.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $655.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.21 earnings per share. Waters’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current 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.