PGGM Investments Sells 3,887 Shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

PGGM Investments trimmed its holdings in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 21.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,211 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,887 shares during the quarter. PGGM Investments’ holdings in Waters were worth $4,679,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WAT. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Waters by 35.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 173 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Waters by 55.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 118 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank increased its stake in Waters by 48.0% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 10,344 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,836,000 after purchasing an additional 3,355 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Waters by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 24,792 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,798,000 after purchasing an additional 829 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Waters by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 15,298 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,195,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In other Waters news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of Waters stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total transaction of $177,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $799,965. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

WAT opened at $311.30 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. Waters Co. has a 12-month low of $231.90 and a 12-month high of $363.80. The company has a market cap of $18.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.69, a PEG ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $334.78 and its 200 day moving average is $307.57.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.56 by $0.06. Waters had a net margin of 21.72% and a return on equity of 81.30%. The business had revenue of $819.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $815.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.89 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $298.67.

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.