Hsbc Holdings PLC Has $81.08 Million Stake in Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Waters Corporation by 1.0%, owning approximately $81.08 million worth of shares.
• Waters Corporation reported earnings of $2.95 per share, exceeding estimates and indicating an 8.8% year-over-year revenue growth to $771.33 million.
• 94.01% of Waters Corporation's stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds, highlighting significant institutional interest in the company.

Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 220,779 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 2,171 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.37% of Waters worth $81,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WAT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waters by 2.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,272,252 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,680,334,000 after buying an additional 173,584 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 6.3% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,066,482 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $761,643,000 after acquiring an additional 123,215 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Waters by 14.0% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,112,128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $409,897,000 after acquiring an additional 136,396 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Waters by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 889,306 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $329,911,000 after purchasing an additional 3,713 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Waters by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 739,630 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $272,605,000 after purchasing an additional 15,563 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WAT. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Waters from $374.00 to $352.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Scotiabank restated a "sector outperform" rating and issued a $465.00 target price on shares of Waters in a report on Friday, July 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $315.00 price target on shares of Waters and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $378.73.

Waters Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE WAT opened at $296.6610 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $17.66 billion, a PE ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.04. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $423.56. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $316.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $344.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.02. Waters had a net margin of 21.71% and a return on equity of 38.60%. The firm had revenue of $771.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $745.96 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.63 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 forecast that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 earnings per share 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.

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