Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC Takes $466.13 Billion Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 18,206,121 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $466,131,171,000. Waters makes up approximately 100.0% of Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC owned about 0.19% of Waters at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Waters during the second quarter worth about $3,182,191,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters in the second quarter worth about $623,921,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 27.0% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,638,772 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $488,028,000 after purchasing an additional 348,379 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,593,388 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $602,921,000 after purchasing an additional 8,590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 32.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,472,419 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $441,446,000 after purchasing an additional 359,596 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In other news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $397.94, for a total value of $1,442,930.44. Following the transaction, the director owned 17,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,086,515.52. The trade was a 16.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAT has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Waters from $425.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Piper Sandler began coverage on Waters in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Waters from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $420.35.

Waters Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of WAT stock opened at $415.07 on Thursday. Waters Corporation has a 1-year low of $282.77 and a 1-year high of $421.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $40.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.51, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $385.08 and a 200-day moving average of $347.72.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.01 by $0.04. Waters had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 3.58%.The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.56 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.