abrdn plc Reduces Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

abrdn plc decreased its holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 256,115 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 7,448 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in Waters were worth $94,992,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 2.4% during the third quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 1,198 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in Waters by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 9,610 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,565,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 3.8% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 851 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Waters by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 353 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Down 0.9 %

WAT stock opened at $411.53 on Tuesday. 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 twelve month low of $279.24 and a twelve month high of $423.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.45 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $387.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $359.42.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Cfra set a $389.00 target price on shares of Waters in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $415.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $384.71.

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.