Allstate Corp Invests $598,000 in Waters Corporation $WAT

Allstate Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,996 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $598,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Waters by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,119 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,754 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $806,397,000 after buying an additional 825,723 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 4.7% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 3,029 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $908,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Waters by 9.3% during the third quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,427 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Waters by 46.4% in the 3rd quarter. Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC now owns 7,793 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,336,000 after acquiring an additional 2,471 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Waters from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $480.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. William Blair assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Guggenheim initiated coverage on Waters in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $440.00 price objective for the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Redburn Partners set a $390.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $395.00.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT opened at $400.78 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $390.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $341.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The stock has a market cap of $23.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.84, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.16.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $799.89 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $780.05 million. Waters had a return on equity of 36.59% and a net margin of 20.89%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. Waters has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.050-13.150 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 4.450-4.550 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current 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.