Waters (NYSE:WAT) Stock Rating Upgraded by Evercore

Waters (NYSE:WAT) was upgraded by stock analysts at Evercore from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $350.00 price target on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Evercore’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 15.02% from the stock’s current price.

WAT has been the subject of several other reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Waters from $415.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Wolfe Research raised Waters from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $480.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $330.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $390.44.

Waters Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Waters stock opened at $304.28 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.73. The company has a market capitalization of $29.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.20. Waters has a 1 year low of $275.05 and a 1 year high of $414.15. The company’s fifty day moving average is $324.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $351.42.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.50 by $0.03. Waters had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 34.79%. The business had revenue of $932.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $928.17 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Waters has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.300-14.500 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.350 EPS. Analysts forecast that Waters will post 12.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Waters

In related news, Director Wei Jiang purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $289.46 per share, with a total value of $144,730.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,441 shares in the company, valued at $996,031.86. This trade represents a 17.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waters

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 225.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,551,010 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $465,008,000 after acquiring an additional 1,074,449 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in Waters by 31.0% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,021,358 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,403,615,000 after purchasing an additional 950,687 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Waters by 44.3% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,689,693 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $806,397,000 after purchasing an additional 825,723 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter worth $265,751,000. Finally, Veritas Asset Management LLP boosted its position in Waters by 112.3% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

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.