Gabelli Funds LLC Buys 1,514 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 22.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,214 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,514 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,890,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Waters by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $638,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in Waters by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co lifted its stake in Waters by 2.3% in the first quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 1,330 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of Waters by 2.9% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $379.37 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $37.25 billion, a PE ratio of 48.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $414.15. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $367.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $345.36.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. Waters had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 11.91%.The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.25 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 91.4% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $410.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, July 6th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 target price for the company. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Waters in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $401.60.

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.