Waters’ (WAT) Outperform Rating Reaffirmed at Wolfe Research

Waters (NYSE:WAT)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by research analysts at Wolfe Research in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $425.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Wolfe Research’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 12.74% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on WAT. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Waters from $345.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Waters to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $392.76.

Waters Trading Down 1.7%

NYSE:WAT opened at $376.97 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business’s 50 day moving average is $325.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $350.93. Waters has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $414.15. The company has a market cap of $37.01 billion, a PE ratio of 47.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion for 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%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 91.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.25 EPS. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Waters will post 14.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waters news, Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $289.46 per share, for a total transaction of $144,730.00. Following the transaction, the director directly 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. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waters

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Nebraska Trust Co acquired a new stake in Waters in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,069,000. NWI Management LP bought a new position in Waters during the 1st quarter valued at $5,804,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Waters by 21.4% during the 1st quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 52,658 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,682,000 after purchasing an additional 9,293 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in Waters by 145.4% during the 1st quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 1,578 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Groupe la Francaise bought a new position in Waters during the 1st quarter valued at $9,206,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.