Busey Bank Buys Shares of 1,861 Waters Corporation $WAT

Busey Bank bought a new position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,861 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $554,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT raised its position in shares of Waters by 121.2% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Louisbourg Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, North Star Investment Management Corp. boosted its position in Waters by 10,200.0% during the 1st quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 103 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Waters in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given 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 $399.84.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock opened at $379.40 on Tuesday. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $414.15. The company has a market capitalization of $37.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.21, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $352.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $346.76. 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 (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.25 EPS. 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, sell-side analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current year.

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.