Woodline Partners LP Cuts Stake in Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• Woodline Partners LP sold 36,421 shares of Waters Corporation, decreasing its holdings by 32.5%, and now owns about 0.13% of the company worth approximately $27.85 million.
• Waters Corporation reported $2.95 EPS for the last quarter, slightly beating estimates, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 8.8% to $771.33 million.
• Equities analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Hold" on Waters shares, with a target price averaging $378.73, despite mixed ratings from various firms.

Woodline Partners LP reduced its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 32.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 75,561 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 36,421 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP owned about 0.13% of Waters worth $27,850,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA increased its stake in Waters by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA now owns 3,155 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,163,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Waters by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Waters by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 658 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Waters by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,381 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,254,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of Waters by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 5,498 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,026,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WAT shares. Scotiabank reissued a "sector outperform" rating and issued a $465.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Waters and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Waters from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Waters from $374.00 to $352.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $378.73.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE:WAT traded down $7.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $295.40. 326,673 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 570,240. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50-day moving average of $299.65 and a 200 day moving average of $333.38. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $275.05 and a 1-year high of $423.56.

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