Waters Corporation $WAT Position Reduced by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc trimmed its position in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 38.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,870 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,469 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Waters were worth $1,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LGT Group Foundation lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 3.2% in the third quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 17,361 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $5,552,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Waters by 8.4% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 51,012 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,270,000 after acquiring an additional 3,945 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG grew its holdings in Waters by 61.9% during the third quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 4,438 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,331,000 after acquiring an additional 1,697 shares during the period. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the third quarter worth about $1,439,000. Finally, Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich bought a new stake in Waters in the third quarter worth about $2,144,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on WAT shares. William Blair began coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $363.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Waters from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Waters has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $393.84.

Waters Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE WAT traded up $1.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $285.11. The company had a trading volume of 145,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,091,027. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.73. Waters Corporation has a twelve month low of $275.05 and a twelve month high of $414.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $354.58 and its 200-day moving average is $350.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.97 billion, a PE ratio of 26.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.20.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $928.17 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waters Company Profile

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.