Freemont Management S.A. Increases Stock Holdings in Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• Freemont Management S.A. increased its Waters Corporation stake by 197.1% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 41,600 shares worth about $15.8 million.
• Waters reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $2.70 and revenue of $1.27 billion, both beating estimates; the company also raised guidance for Q2 2026 and FY 2026.
• Analysts remain moderately positive on WAT, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $395.12, even as some firms trimmed targets or kept hold ratings.

Freemont Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 197.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,600 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 27,600 shares during the period. Waters accounts for approximately 2.8% of Freemont Management S.A.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Freemont Management S.A. owned approximately 0.07% of Waters worth $15,801,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in shares of Waters during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waters by 115.4% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 112 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. eCIO Inc. bought a new position in shares of Waters during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Waters by 510.3% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 177 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WAT. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Waters from $423.00 to $350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Sunday, February 22nd. Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 target price on Waters in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays increased their price target on Waters from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Evercore raised Waters from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Three investment 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $395.12.

Waters Trading Down 4.9%

NYSE WAT opened at $334.80 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Waters Corporation has a twelve month low of $275.05 and a twelve month high of $414.15. The company has a market cap of $32.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.14. The business's fifty day moving average is $313.28 and its 200 day moving average is $352.20.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.25 EPS. Waters's revenue for the quarter 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 expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In related news, Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares of the 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 transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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