Steph & Co. Takes $73,000 Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Steph & Co. acquired a new stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 209 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $73,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in shares of Waters in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Waters by 118.9% during the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 81 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its position in Waters by 5,200.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Waters in the first quarter valued at about $41,000. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America upped their price target on Waters from $370.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $385.00 price objective on shares of Waters and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Robert W. Baird dropped 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. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector outperform” rating and issued a $465.00 price target on shares of Waters in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. 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. According to MarketBeat, Waters currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $378.73.

Waters Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAT opened at $288.25 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $294.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $328.37. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $423.56. The company has a market cap of $17.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.07. 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 (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.02. Waters had a return on equity of 38.60% and a net margin of 21.71%.The firm had revenue of $771.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $745.96 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.63 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 3.150-3.250 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 12.950-13.050 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Waters Company 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.