Waters (NYSE:WAT) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on WAT. Evercore raised shares of Waters from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $425.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 target price on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $395.71.

Waters Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of WAT opened at $371.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.79 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Waters has a 1 year low of $275.05 and a 1 year high of $414.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $325.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $350.93. The firm has a market cap of $36.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.25 earnings per share. Waters’s revenue for the quarter was up 91.4% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, equities analysts expect that Waters will post 14.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In related news, Director Wei Jiang purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $289.46 per share, for a total transaction of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,441 shares in the company, valued at $996,031.86. This represents a 17.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waters

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT lifted its position in Waters by 121.2% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Waters in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new stake in Waters in the third quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the first quarter worth $27,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.