London Co. of Virginia Trims Stake in Waters Corporation $WAT

London Co. of Virginia lessened its stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 29.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 355,310 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 149,364 shares during the quarter. London Co. of Virginia’s holdings in Waters were worth $105,813,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 0.9% in the first quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 224,431 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $66,836,000 after acquiring an additional 1,958 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in Waters by 64.5% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 3,351 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $998,000 after purchasing an additional 1,314 shares in the last quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC raised its stake in Waters by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC now owns 7,238 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,155,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in Waters by 184.1% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 20,893 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,222,000 after purchasing an additional 13,540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lifted its holdings in Waters by 51.1% in the 1st quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 2,596 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $773,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $374.49 on Friday. 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 $36.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.59, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.20. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $365.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $346.13. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $414.15.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 91.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $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, research analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on WAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $401.60.

Waters Profile

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.