M&T Bank Corp Cuts Stock Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

M&T Bank Corp lowered its stake in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,619 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 90 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,085,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Advisory Alpha LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 2.4% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 966 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in Waters by 0.3% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 3.8% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of Waters stock opened at $392.34 on Monday. Waters Co. has a one year low of $279.24 and a one year high of $423.56. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $390.63 and its 200 day moving average is $369.14. The stock has a market cap of $23.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a return on equity of 46.31% and a net margin of 21.56%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Waters Co. will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on WAT shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Waters from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $391.07.

About Waters

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.