Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Buys New Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. invested $1.24 million in Waters Corporation, acquiring 3,376 shares in the first quarter, highlighting growing institutional interest in the company.
• Waters Corporation's recent quarterly earnings report showed a profit of $2.95 per share, exceeding analyst expectations and indicating a revenue increase of 8.8% year-over-year.
• Major research analysts have mixed sentiments on Waters' stock, with price targets ranging from $315 to $375, while the average rating remains a "Hold" with a target price of $378.73.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 3,376 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,244,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WAT. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 50,228.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 662,320 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $244,111,000 after buying an additional 661,004 shares in the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd grew its stake in Waters by 676.8% in the first quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 705,733 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $260,112,000 after purchasing an additional 614,877 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in Waters by 15.7% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,070,671 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,131,757,000 after purchasing an additional 416,669 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Waters by 93.3% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 572,823 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $211,125,000 after purchasing an additional 276,433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Waters in the first quarter valued at about $94,028,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Waters Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of WAT traded down $7.05 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $295.40. 326,673 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 570,240. The company has a market cap of $17.58 billion, a PE ratio of 26.64, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.07. The firm's 50 day moving average is $299.65 and its 200-day moving average is $333.02. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.75.

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

About Waters

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.