Progressive Investment Management Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Progressive Investment Management Corp cut its position in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,076 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 691 shares during the period. Waters makes up 1.9% of Progressive Investment Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Progressive Investment Management Corp’s holdings in Waters were worth $7,448,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in shares of Waters by 21.3% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 546 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $203,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS raised its position in Waters by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 10,294 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,819,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 38,685 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $14,351,000 after purchasing an additional 1,999 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 22,155 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $8,219,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, AKO Capital LLP increased its position in shares of Waters by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. AKO Capital LLP now owns 815,379 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $302,489,000 after purchasing an additional 25,172 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of WAT opened at $361.61 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.76, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $387.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $372.29. Waters Co. has a twelve month low of $279.24 and a twelve month high of $423.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (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%. Equities analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 12.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com cut Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Waters from $405.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waters currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $397.40.

Waters Company 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.