Meeder Advisory Services Inc. Takes $896,000 Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,388 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $896,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waters in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV purchased a new position in Waters during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its stake in Waters by 121.2% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Vision Retirement LLC acquired a new stake in Waters in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Bollard Group LLC purchased a new stake in Waters in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waters Stock Performance

Waters stock opened at $416.45 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $379.73 and its 200-day moving average is $346.54. The company has a market cap of $40.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Waters Corporation has a 12 month low of $282.77 and a 12 month high of $420.26.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.01 by $0.04. Waters had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 3.58%.The business had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.95 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 113.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 14.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In other news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $397.94, for a total value of $1,442,930.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 17,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,086,515.52. This represents a 16.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WAT. TD Cowen raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $408.00 to $475.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Waters in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $420.00 price target on shares of Waters in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waters presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $420.35.

Waters Company 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.