Waters Corporation $WAT Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon Corp reduced its Waters Corporation stake by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 17,742 shares and ending with 323,230 shares valued at about $122.8 million.
• Waters reported better-than-expected fiscal Q1 earnings and revenue, with EPS of $2.70 versus the $2.31 consensus and revenue of $1.27 billion versus $1.20 billion expected. The company also raised guidance for Q2 2026 and FY 2026.
• Analysts remain generally upbeat on the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $394.24. Recent rating changes included upgrades and higher price targets from firms such as Barclays, Bank of America, and Evercore.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp cut its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 323,230 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 17,742 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.54% of Waters worth $122,772,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Waters by 112.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $471,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Waters by 2.9% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waters by 3.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 200,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $73,733,000 after purchasing an additional 6,976 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Waters by 16.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,126 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $415,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Waters during the second quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waters news, Director Wei Jiang acquired 500 shares of Waters stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $289.46 per share, with a total value of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 3,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at $996,031.86. This represents a 17.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Waters from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Citigroup began coverage on Waters in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $425.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore upgraded Waters from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $350.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waters has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $394.24.

Waters Stock Performance

WAT opened at $365.74 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $35.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.21. Waters Corporation has a 52-week low of $275.05 and a 52-week high of $414.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.79. The business's fifty day moving average is $331.04 and its 200-day moving average is $350.91.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. Waters had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 11.91%.Waters's quarterly revenue was up 91.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.25 EPS. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Waters

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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