Strs Ohio Lowers Holdings in Waters Corporation $WAT

Strs Ohio decreased its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 72.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,424 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,804 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Waters were worth $427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Waters by 112.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $471,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Waters by 3.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 200,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $73,733,000 after purchasing an additional 6,976 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Waters by 16.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,126 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the second quarter worth $232,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE WAT opened at $370.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.53. Waters Corporation has a one year low of $275.05 and a one year high of $423.00. The firm has a market cap of $22.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.05, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $390.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $343.75.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. William Blair started coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target on the stock. HSBC assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $460.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Waters in a report on Monday, December 1st. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $423.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Waters currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $398.61.

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.