Nuance Investments LLC Sells 146,305 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Nuance Investments LLC reduced its holdings in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 99.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 581 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 146,305 shares during the quarter. Nuance Investments LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $265,751,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 32.3% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,472,419 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $441,446,000 after purchasing an additional 359,596 shares in the last quarter. Fundsmith LLP boosted its position in shares of Waters by 9.6% during the third quarter. Fundsmith LLP now owns 3,955,498 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,185,898,000 after purchasing an additional 347,091 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the third quarter valued at approximately $92,489,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 155.1% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 468,221 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $177,844,000 after purchasing an additional 284,699 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $425.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waters in a research note on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Waters from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $394.24.

Waters Stock Down 2.9%

Waters stock opened at $365.74 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $35.91 billion, a PE ratio of 46.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.79. Waters Corporation has a one year low of $275.05 and a one year high of $414.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $331.04 and a 200 day moving average of $350.91.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. Waters had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 11.91%.Waters’s revenue for the quarter was up 91.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.25 earnings per share. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 14.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Wei Jiang acquired 500 shares of Waters stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $289.46 per share, for a total transaction of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,441 shares in the company, valued at $996,031.86. The trade was a 17.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

About Waters

Waters Corporation is a global provider of analytical instruments, software and services for laboratory and research applications. The company designs, manufactures and sells technologies centered on liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, separation science, and related sample preparation and detection systems. Its product portfolio includes chromatographs, mass spectrometers, columns and consumables, laboratory informatics and workflow software, as well as technical support and training services that help customers run and interpret complex analyses.

Waters serves a wide range of end markets that include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, contract research and testing laboratories, academic and government research institutions, clinical diagnostics, food and environmental testing, and industrial and chemical manufacturers.