Waters (NYSE:WAT) Research Coverage Started at HSBC

HSBC started coverage on shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $460.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on WAT. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on Waters in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, January 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, December 1st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $423.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Rothschild Redb raised shares of Waters to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $398.61.

Waters Trading Down 2.7%

NYSE:WAT opened at $374.67 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.16. Waters has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a fifty day moving average of $390.90 and a 200 day moving average of $342.92.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $799.89 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $780.05 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.89% and a return on equity of 36.59%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.93 earnings per share. Waters has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.050-13.150 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 4.450-4.550 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Waters will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter worth about $750,000. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 73.8% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 355,955 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $135,202,000 after purchasing an additional 151,102 shares during the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 56.0% during the fourth quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich now owns 11,157 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,284,000 after purchasing an additional 4,006 shares during the last quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Waters by 117.8% in the 4th quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC now owns 1,111 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O ROURKE & COMPANY Inc grew its stake in shares of Waters by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. O ROURKE & COMPANY Inc now owns 1,750 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $665,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.