Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires New Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,092 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $4,225,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WAT. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD bought a new position in Waters in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,397,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waters by 3.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,656,891 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,295,612,000 after acquiring an additional 246,128 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter worth about $4,677,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $175,320,000. Finally, Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 41.9% during the 3rd quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 13,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,138,000 after acquiring an additional 4,077 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on WAT. UBS Group decreased 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. HSBC initiated coverage on Waters in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $460.00 price objective for the company. William Blair began coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Barclays began coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $393.84.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $318.99 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $368.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $351.02. Waters Corporation has a 1 year low of $275.05 and a 1 year high of $414.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.20.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $932.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.17 million. Waters had a return on equity of 34.79% and a net margin of 20.30%.Waters’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.10 EPS. 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, research analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.