Korea Investment CORP Sells 2,375 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Korea Investment CORP reduced its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 4.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,296 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,375 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.05% of Waters worth $18,488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT raised its holdings in Waters by 121.2% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in Waters during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Waters in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Resources Management Corp CT ADV purchased a new position in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.94, for a total transaction of $1,442,930.44. Following the sale, the director directly owned 17,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,086,515.52. This trade represents a 16.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Waters from $425.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Waters from $380.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. HSBC boosted their target price on Waters from $415.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 target price on Waters in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on Waters in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $420.35.

Waters Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE:WAT opened at $412.37 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $40.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 102.84, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $381.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $347.02. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $282.77 and a 52 week high of $421.74.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.01 by $0.04. Waters had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 3.58%.The business had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.95 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.