Waters Corporation $WAT Shares Purchased by Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 2,686.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,634 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,360 shares during the quarter. Waters comprises about 1.3% of Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT lifted its stake in Waters by 121.2% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Waters in the third quarter valued at $26,000. eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Waters by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 155 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in Waters by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 160 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WAT. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Waters in a research report on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 price target on Waters in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Waters from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Waters from $423.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Sunday, February 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $394.56.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of Waters stock opened at $357.66 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Waters Corporation has a 52 week low of $275.05 and a 52 week high of $414.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $338.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $349.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.21.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. Waters’s quarterly revenue was up 91.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.25 earnings per share. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Waters Corporation will post 14.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waters 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.