Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 3,287 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank increased its stake in Waters by 5.6%, buying 3,287 shares and bringing its total to 61,588 shares valued at about $23.39 million (≈0.10% of the company).
• Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares at an average price of $289.46, raising his holdings to 3,441 shares (a 17% increase); insiders now own about 0.82% of Waters.
• Waters beat quarterly EPS estimates ($4.53 vs. $4.50) with revenue up 6.9% year‑over‑year and set FY2026 EPS guidance of $14.30–$14.50, while analysts remain mixed—consensus target ≈ $387.53 amid several recent price-target cuts.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT - Free Report) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 61,588 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 3,287 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned 0.10% of Waters worth $23,393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Waters in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in Waters in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Waters by 115.4% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 112 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Waters by 510.3% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 177 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In other news, Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $289.46 per share, for a total transaction of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 3,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $996,031.86. This represents a 17.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Waters Price Performance

WAT stock opened at $335.79 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $32.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.18, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Waters Corporation has a 12-month low of $275.05 and a 12-month high of $414.15. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $312.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $353.02.

Waters (NYSE:WAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.50 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $932.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.17 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 34.79%. Waters's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.10 earnings per share. 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, analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WAT. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Waters from $415.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $330.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. UBS Group cut 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 cut 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, Evercore upgraded shares of Waters from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $387.53.

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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