Strs Ohio Purchases 26,923 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Strs Ohio grew its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 1,886.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,923 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Waters were worth $8,443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Keybank National Association OH boosted its position in shares of Waters by 113.0% during the first quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 3,876 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,154,000 after purchasing an additional 2,056 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Waters by 253.1% during the first quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 173 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Waters by 72.2% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 198 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Letson Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter valued at $540,000. Finally, Essex Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 1st quarter worth about $225,000. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Evercore upgraded shares of Waters from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. HSBC raised their target price on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Waters in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $400.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 price target on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Four analysts have 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, Waters presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $396.68.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock opened at $378.62 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $37.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.79. Waters Corporation has a one year low of $275.05 and a one year high of $414.15. The company’s 50-day moving average is $351.53 and its 200 day moving average is $346.75.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The business’s revenue was up 91.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.25 earnings per share. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 EPS 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.