Westport Asset Management Inc. Purchases Shares of 2,338 Waters Corporation $WAT

Westport Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 2,338 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $696,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WAT. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,890,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Waters by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $638,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in Waters by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co raised its position in Waters by 2.3% in the first quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 1,330 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $396,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE:WAT opened at $374.49 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $365.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $345.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.20. Waters Corporation has a 1-year low of $275.05 and a 1-year high of $414.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.39. Waters had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 11.91%.The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.25 EPS. The business’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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAT has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $350.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.60.

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.