Waters (NYSE:WAT) Price Target Lowered to $350.00 at Bank of America

Waters (NYSE:WAT) had its target price lowered by Bank of America from $410.00 to $350.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Waters from $385.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research upgraded Waters from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $480.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $440.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $400.84.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $326.82 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $385.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $347.69. The firm has a market cap of $19.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.35, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.18. Waters has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $414.15.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.50 by $0.03. Waters had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 36.45%. The firm had revenue of $932.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $928.17 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.10 EPS. The company’s quarterly 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. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waters will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Waters

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its holdings in Waters by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,890,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 359 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its position in Waters by 5.1% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its stake in Waters by 2.9% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Waters

Here are the key news stories impacting Waters this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — Waters reported $4.53 EPS and $932M revenue, topping consensus and showing year‑over‑year revenue growth, supporting the company’s operating strength. Zacks: Waters Beats Q4
• Positive Sentiment: Major analyst bullishness: Guggenheim reaffirmed a Buy and set a $440 price target, and Citi initiated coverage with a Buy and $425 target — both imply sizable upside versus the current level. Benzinga / Guggenheim TickerReport / Citi
• Positive Sentiment: Waters completed the Reverse Morris Trust combination with BD’s Biosciences & Diagnostic Solutions business, creating a larger life‑sciences company and naming Claire M. Fraser, Ph.D. to the board — a strategic step that management says will drive scale and synergies. PR Newswire: Combination Closed
• Neutral Sentiment: Evercore ISI initiated coverage with an In‑Line rating and $360 target — modest upside but not an upgrade; this is informational rather than a clear directional catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term guidance disappointed: Waters guided Q1 EPS of $2.25–$2.35 vs. consensus ~ $2.52 and flagged first‑quarter profit below Wall Street estimates, which pressured sentiment. Yahoo Finance: Q1 Forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Several analysts trimmed targets or tempered ratings: Bank of America cut its price target to $350 and kept a Neutral rating, and TD Cowen maintained a Hold while lowering its target to $373 — incremental negative influence on sentiment. Benzinga / BofA TipRanks / TD Cowen
• Positive Sentiment: Management set FY‑2026 targets that reflect the BD integration: projected revenue around $6.4–$6.46B and a target margin near 28.1%, signaling potential longer‑term upside if synergies materialize. MSN: FY2026 Targets

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.