Waters Corporation $WAT Shares Acquired by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 3,776.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 18,102 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 17,635 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Waters were worth $6,876,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its position in Waters by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,890,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Waters by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $638,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its position in Waters by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 359 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $136,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in 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. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC increased its position in Waters by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,751 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $665,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 target price on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Waters from $410.00 to $350.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $425.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $396.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waters news, Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $289.46 per share, with a total value of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 3,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $996,031.86. This trade represents a 17.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waters Price Performance

NYSE:WAT opened at $342.83 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $317.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $351.55. The firm has a market cap of $33.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.56, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.14. Waters Corporation has a 52-week low of $275.05 and a 52-week high of $414.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.25 EPS. Waters’s revenue was up 91.4% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 14.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.