Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 274,649 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 99.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,402 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 274,649 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Waters were worth $720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Waters by 2.9% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 630 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 327 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Waters by 1.8% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,264 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $679,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, CW Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waters by 2.0% during the second quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 2,112 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $737,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of Waters stock opened at $323.91 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $379.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $348.42. Waters Corporation has a one year low of $275.05 and a one year high of $414.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.07, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.18.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.50 by $0.03. Waters had a return on equity of 34.79% and a net margin of 20.30%.The business had revenue of $932.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.17 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.10 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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, research analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WAT. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They set a “hold” rating and a $360.00 price objective for the company. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $460.00 price target on the stock. Barclays began coverage on Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $397.68.

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.