Stiles Financial Services Inc Sells 635 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Stiles Financial Services Inc trimmed its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 41.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 888 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 635 shares during the quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc’s holdings in Waters were worth $292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. bought a new stake in Waters in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 11,000.0% during the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 111 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 55.3% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 118 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Waters

In related news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of Waters stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $799,965. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waters in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. TheStreet raised Waters from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $298.67.

Waters Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE WAT traded down $6.37 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $338.66. 24,969 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 398,961. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.80, a PEG ratio of 6.75 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $337.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $303.57. Waters Co. has a twelve month low of $231.90 and a twelve month high of $363.80.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.06. Waters had a return on equity of 81.30% and a net margin of 21.72%. The company had revenue of $819.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $815.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.84 earnings per share. Waters’s revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Waters Co. will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal 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.