Holocene Advisors LP Invests $92.49 Million in Waters Corporation $WAT

Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 308,491 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $92,489,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 78.6% during the 3rd quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 70,308 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $21,079,000 after acquiring an additional 30,941 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 5.3% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 8,340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,500,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the period. Distillate Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $13,962,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Waters in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $456,000. Finally, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its position in Waters by 67.7% during the 3rd quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 4,827 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,948 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on WAT. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. HSBC assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $460.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $363.00 price objective on Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. William Blair initiated coverage on Waters in a research note on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Waters from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $393.84.

Waters Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE WAT opened at $290.01 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Waters Corporation has a 1-year low of $275.05 and a 1-year high of $414.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $350.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $351.53. The company has a market capitalization of $28.45 billion, a PE ratio of 26.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.20.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $928.17 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.10 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly 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. As a group, sell-side 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.