Baillie Gifford & Co. Has $17.43 Million Position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT)

Baillie Gifford & Co. trimmed its position in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) by 8.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,634 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 4,472 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned 0.09% of Waters worth $17,430,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new position in shares of Waters during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Waters in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Waters by 300.0% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 144 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Waters from $295.00 to $275.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $301.20.

Insider Activity at Waters

In related news, Director Richard H. Fearon purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $332.90 per share, for a total transaction of $332,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $550,283.70. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Waters news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total value of $1,446,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,321,894.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Fearon purchased 1,000 shares of Waters stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $550,283.70. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Down 0.4 %

WAT stock traded down $1.29 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $286.21. 224,451 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 463,292. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $314.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $322.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.30. Waters Co. has a fifty-two week low of $231.90 and a fifty-two week high of $367.21. The company has a market capitalization of $16.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.09, a PEG ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 0.95.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.11. Waters had a return on equity of 66.59% and a net margin of 20.75%. The firm had revenue of $636.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $635.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.49 earnings per share. Waters’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Waters Co. will post 11.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.