The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Decreases Stock Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 60.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 209,540 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 315,706 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.21% of Waters worth $78,585,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Waters by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 290,936 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $108,930,000 after purchasing an additional 54,144 shares in the last quarter. Sone Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the second quarter worth $22,767,000. Vega Investment Solutions grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 26.7% during the second quarter. Vega Investment Solutions now owns 3,749 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,406,000 after buying an additional 789 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its position in shares of Waters by 73.3% in the second quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 6,085 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,282,000 after buying an additional 2,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castlefield Investment Partners LLP lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 107.6% in the second quarter. Castlefield Investment Partners LLP now owns 1,553 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $582,000 after buying an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Waters

In related news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.94, for a total value of $1,442,930.44. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,086,515.52. This represents a 16.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Waters from $435.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 price target on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Waters in a report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $420.35.

Waters Price Performance

Waters stock opened at $414.41 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $383.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $347.45. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $282.77 and a 12-month high of $421.74. The stock has a market cap of $40.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 103.34, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.19.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.01 by $0.04. Waters had a net margin of 3.58% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.95 EPS. Waters’s revenue was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 14.56 earnings per share for the current 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.