MetLife Investment Management LLC Decreases Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

MetLife Investment Management LLC cut its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,064 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 419 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $6,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WAT. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Waters during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Waters during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Waters by 190.2% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in Waters by 19,900.0% in the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 200 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on WAT. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $355.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $335.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Waters from $363.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $365.85.

Waters Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $384.72 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $359.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $333.60. Waters Co. has a twelve month low of $276.84 and a twelve month high of $395.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.84 billion, a PE ratio of 36.71, a PEG ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $740.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $712.99 million. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.84 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast 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.