Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Sells 34,925 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership decreased its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 9.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 354,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 34,925 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned 0.60% of Waters worth $106,402,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,074,449 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in Waters by 31.0% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,021,358 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,403,615,000 after buying an additional 950,687 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Waters by 44.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 825,723 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the second quarter worth about $266,384,000. Finally, Veritas Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the third quarter valued at about $175,320,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on WAT shares. Barclays started coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wolfe Research upgraded Waters from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $480.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $393.84.

Waters Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE WAT opened at $318.99 on Friday. Waters Corporation has a 1 year low of $275.05 and a 1 year high of $414.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $31.29 billion, a PE ratio of 29.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a fifty day moving average of $368.77 and a 200 day moving average of $350.19.

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

Waters 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.