Waters Corporation $WAT Shares Bought by Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 2,686.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,634 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 7,360 shares during the period. Waters comprises about 1.3% of Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,900,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its holdings in Waters by 121.2% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its position in Waters by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 155 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in Waters by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 160 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Price Performance

NYSE:WAT opened at $357.66 on Tuesday. Waters Corporation has a 12 month low of $275.05 and a 12 month high of $414.15. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $338.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $349.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $35.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.21.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Barclays upped their price target on Waters from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Evercore raised Waters from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $394.56.

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.