Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Raises Stake in Waters Corporation $WAT

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 69.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 52,893 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 21,718 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.05% of Waters worth $15,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at about $265,751,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP increased its stake in shares of Waters by 112.3% during the 4th quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP now owns 1,241,206 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $471,447,000 after purchasing an additional 656,436 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Waters by 509.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 671,103 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $254,906,000 after purchasing an additional 561,047 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 1,611.3% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 581,063 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $220,705,000 after purchasing an additional 547,109 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 2,281.7% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 538,713 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $204,619,000 after purchasing an additional 516,094 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WAT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Waters to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. 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 research note on Thursday, May 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Waters from $345.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Waters in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price objective on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $396.68.

Waters Stock Up 0.1%

WAT opened at $378.62 on Friday. Waters Corporation has a 12 month low of $275.05 and a 12 month high of $414.15. The company has a market cap of $37.18 billion, a PE ratio of 48.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.20. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $350.65 and a 200 day moving average of $346.80.

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 business had revenue of $1.27 billion for 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up 91.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.25 EPS. 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, sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 EPS for the current 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.