GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd Reduces Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 15.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 530,654 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 94,890 shares during the quarter. Waters comprises approximately 5.4% of GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd’s holdings in Waters were worth $201,750,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 112.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 2.9% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Waters by 3.6% during 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 lifted its holdings in Waters by 16.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,126 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Waters during the second quarter valued at about $232,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Trading Up 4.8%

Shares of WAT opened at $384.12 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $323.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $351.18. Waters Corporation has a twelve month low of $275.05 and a twelve month high of $414.15. The stock has a market cap of $37.72 billion, a PE ratio of 48.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.14. 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 announced 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. Waters had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 11.91%.The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.25 earnings per share. The company’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. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $440.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group upped their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Waters from $345.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $396.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In related news, Director Wei Jiang acquired 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $289.46 per share, for a total transaction of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.