M&T Bank Corp Increases Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in Waters by 1,662.4% in Q4, adding 60,626 shares to hold 64,273 shares worth $24.41 million (about 0.11% of the company).
• Analyst views are mixed—several firms cut targets (UBS to $330, Morgan Stanley to $350) while Barclays initiated coverage at Overweight with a $400 target; consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $387.53.
• Waters beat Q4 estimates with EPS of $4.53 and revenue of $932.36M and issued FY2026 guidance of 14.30–14.50 EPS, roughly matching the sell-side average forecast (~14.38 EPS).

M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 1,662.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,273 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 60,626 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp owned 0.11% of Waters worth $24,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Waters by 115.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 112 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WAT shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Waters in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $330.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Waters from $423.00 to $350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Sunday, February 22nd. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $387.53.

Waters Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE WAT opened at $334.61 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $312.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $352.90. The company has a market capitalization of $32.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.20. Waters Corporation has a 12 month low of $275.05 and a 12 month high of $414.15.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.50 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $932.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $928.17 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 34.79%. The company's revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.10 EPS. Waters has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.300-14.500 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.350 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waters news, Director Wei Jiang purchased 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $289.46 per share, for a total transaction of $144,730.00. Following the purchase, 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 acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Waters Company 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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