Erste Asset Management GmbH Boosts Stock Holdings in Waters Corporation $WAT

Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 204.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,301 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,601 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Waters were worth $4,155,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Waters by 112.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $471,000 after buying an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $386,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Waters by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 200,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $73,733,000 after acquiring an additional 6,976 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Waters by 16.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,126 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter valued at about $232,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $363.00 price target on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. HSBC assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $460.00 price objective for the company. Barclays began coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Evercore began coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $360.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $393.84.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $318.99 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $368.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $350.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.18. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $414.15.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.50 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $932.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.17 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 34.79%. Waters’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.10 earnings per share. Waters has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.300-14.500 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.350 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.