Waters (NYSE:WAT) Sets New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Posted by Stanley Muller on Aug 20th, 2026

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT – Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $421.74 and last traded at $419.08, with a volume of 349531 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $415.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 target price on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Waters from $425.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Waters in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $420.35.

Get Our Latest Analysis on WAT

Waters Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $379.73 and its 200 day moving average is $346.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.86. The stock has a market cap of $40.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 103.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.19.

Waters (NYSE:WAT – Get Free Report) last announced 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. Waters’s revenue was up 113.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 14.57 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In other news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 17,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,086,515.52. This trade represents a 16.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waters

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waters in the second quarter worth about $466,131,171,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the second quarter valued at about $3,182,191,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $623,921,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Waters by 27.0% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,638,772 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $488,028,000 after purchasing an additional 348,379 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Waters by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,593,388 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $602,921,000 after purchasing an additional 8,590 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.