Analysts Anticipate Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) to Announce $2.78 Earnings Per Share

Analysts expect Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT – Get Rating) to announce earnings of $2.78 per share for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Five analysts have issued estimates for Waters’ earnings. The lowest EPS estimate is $2.70 and the highest is $2.85. Waters reported earnings per share of $2.60 during the same quarter last year, which would suggest a positive year over year growth rate of 6.9%. The business is scheduled to issue its next earnings results on Monday, January 1st.

On average, analysts expect that Waters will report full-year earnings of $11.86 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $11.80 to $11.95. For the next financial year, analysts anticipate that the company will report earnings of $13.02 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $12.75 to $13.28. Zacks Investment Research’s earnings per share averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that that provide coverage for Waters.

Waters (NYSE:WAT – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 3rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $690.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $634.08 million. Waters had a net margin of 24.87% and a return on equity of 239.12%. Waters’s revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 EPS.

Several research firms recently commented on WAT. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Waters from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $320.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Monday, April 25th. Finally, SVB Leerink reduced their price objective on shares of Waters from $375.00 to $350.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $373.83.

NYSE WAT opened at $342.47 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.12. The firm has a market cap of $20.69 billion, a PE ratio of 30.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $314.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $331.70. Waters has a 52 week low of $288.32 and a 52 week high of $428.22.

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Ellevest Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 144.4% in the 1st quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 88 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Kenfarb & CO. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at $56,000. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. 90.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Waters (Get Rating)

Waters Corporation, a specialty measurement company, 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.

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