Insider Buying: Waters (NYSE:WAT) Director Acquires $144,730.00 in Stock

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) Director Wei Jiang acquired 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $289.46 per share, with a total value of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $996,031.86. This trade represents a 17.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Waters Price Performance

WAT stock opened at $299.48 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $29.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.81, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $414.15. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $342.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $350.73.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.50 by $0.03. Waters had a return on equity of 34.79% and a net margin of 20.30%.The firm had revenue of $932.36 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $928.17 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.10 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Waters has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.300-14.500 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.350 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 target price on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. William Blair started coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $393.84.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its position in shares of Waters by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,890,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Waters by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $638,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in Waters by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 359 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $136,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.