Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Shares Purchased by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 27.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,829 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,489 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Waters during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 235.7% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the 2nd quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lifted its position in Waters by 63.2% during the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 186 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WAT. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Cfra set a $389.00 target price on Waters in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $384.71.

Waters Stock Performance

Waters stock opened at $408.40 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $24.25 billion, a PE ratio of 38.97, a P/E/G ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 1.01. Waters Co. has a 12 month low of $279.24 and a 12 month high of $416.24. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $379.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $352.73. 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 (NYSE:WAT) last announced 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $712.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.84 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

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.