Waters Corporation $WAT Shares Acquired by Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 30.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,729 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,947 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned 0.05% of Waters worth $15,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT grew its position in Waters by 121.2% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. First United Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Up 0.8%

WAT stock opened at $378.00 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $349.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $346.85. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $414.15. The company has a market cap of $37.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.20.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 91.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.25 earnings per share. 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, research analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Waters in a report on Friday, June 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Waters from $345.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $396.68.

Waters 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.