First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lowered its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT – Free Report) by 24.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,918 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 624 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Waters were worth $511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in Waters by 1,719.0% in the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 382 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $113,000 after buying an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Credit Suisse AG raised its position in Waters by 2.0% in the first quarter. Credit Suisse AG now owns 123,491 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $38,237,000 after purchasing an additional 2,479 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 10,001 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,426,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 4.5% during the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 1,643 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $509,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Place Capital Corp bought a new position in Waters in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $65,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research firms have weighed in on WAT. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. StockNews.com began coverage on Waters in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $319.13.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Waters news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of Waters stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.48, for a total value of $1,165,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,382 shares in the company, valued at $4,192,065.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Waters Price Performance
Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $269.00 on Monday. Waters Co. has a twelve month low of $248.18 and a twelve month high of $353.70. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $278.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $280.61. The company has a market capitalization of $15.90 billion, a PE ratio of 23.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35.
Waters (NYSE:WAT – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $740.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $733.51 million. Waters had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 124.03%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 12.24 EPS for the current year.
Waters Company Profile
Waters Corporation, a specialty measurement company, 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.
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