Beck Mack & Oliver LLC Purchases 3,658 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• Beck Mack & Oliver LLC increased its stake in Waters Corporation by 1.5%, acquiring an additional 3,658 shares, giving them a total of approximately 249,909 shares valued at around $92 million.
• Several hedge funds significantly increased their holdings in Waters, with one fund, GAMMA Investing LLC, boosting its position by 50,228.3%, now owning 662,320 shares worth $244 million.
• Waters Corporation reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.95, exceeding analyst expectations, and expects earnings guidance for FY 2025 to be between $12.950-$13.050 EPS.

Beck Mack & Oliver LLC grew its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 249,909 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 3,658 shares during the quarter. Waters accounts for 1.8% of Beck Mack & Oliver LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC owned about 0.42% of Waters worth $92,109,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MAI Capital Management boosted its holdings in Waters by 4.6% in the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,439 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $530,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Waters by 6.9% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 36,135 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $13,318,000 after acquiring an additional 2,341 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Waters by 2,368.1% in the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 28,087 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $10,352,000 after acquiring an additional 26,949 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Waters by 162.8% in the first quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 1,606 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $592,000 after acquiring an additional 995 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in Waters by 0.9% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 85,595 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $31,546,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Bank of America upped their price target on Waters from $370.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $385.00 price target on Waters and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector outperform" rating and set a $465.00 price target on shares of Waters in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Waters in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $378.73.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT traded up $10.00 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $300.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 661,645 shares, compared to its average volume of 613,341. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.86 billion, a PE ratio of 27.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $306.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $337.05. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $423.56.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $771.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $745.96 million. Waters had a return on equity of 38.60% and a net margin of 21.71%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.63 earnings per share. Waters has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 3.150-3.250 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 12.950-13.050 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waters Profile

Waters Corporation provides analytical workflow solutions in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Waters and TA. The company designs, manufactures, sells, and services high and ultra-performance liquid chromatography, as well as mass spectrometry (MS) technology systems and support products, including chromatography columns, other consumable products, and post-warranty service plans.