Waters (NYSE:WAT) Stock Gets Price Target Increase from Barclays

Waters (NYSE:WAT) had its target price boosted by analysts at Barclays from $500.00 to $530.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Barclays‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 12.78% from the company’s previous close.

WAT has been the subject of several other research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Waters from $400.00 to $440.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Waters from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Evercore increased their target price on Waters from $410.00 to $480.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Waters from $440.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $470.43.

Waters Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of NYSE:WAT traded up $10.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $469.93. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 562,965 shares, compared to its average volume of 967,967. The firm has a market cap of $46.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 117.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $432.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $371.16. Waters has a 1 year low of $282.77 and a 1 year high of $482.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $0.10. Waters had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 3.58%. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 120.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Waters will post 14.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Waters

In other news, Director Christopher Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the director owned 17,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,086,515.52. This trade represents a 16.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waters during the 2nd quarter valued at $466,131,171,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Waters in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,182,191,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,382,008 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,643,428,000 after buying an additional 19,998 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the 2nd quarter valued at $623,921,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Waters by 27.0% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,638,772 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $488,028,000 after acquiring an additional 348,379 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Waters News

Here are the key news stories impacting Waters this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target to $525 from $475 and maintained an “outperform” rating. KeyCorp also lifted its target, to $500 from $460, with an “overweight” rating—both revisions signal greater analyst confidence. Royal Bank of Canada price target update KeyCorp rating
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter adjusted EPS of $4.10 topped the roughly $4.00 consensus, and revenue of $1.77 billion exceeded estimates. Waters reported 9% organic revenue growth and raised its 2026 outlook, providing a key fundamental reason for investor optimism. Waters Q3 2026 results
• Positive Sentiment: Management outlined a 2027 framework targeting a 29.2% adjusted operating margin and a path to high-single-digit growth, supporting the longer-term outlook. Waters 2027 framework
• Positive Sentiment: Waters acquired MOBILion Systems to add high-resolution ion-mobility technology to its mass spectrometry portfolio, expanding its proteomics capabilities. The CEO also pointed to AI-related demand for lab tools as drugmakers seek to accelerate research. MOBILion acquisition
• Neutral Sentiment: A recent valuation-focused article raises the question of whether WAT’s shares already reflect its improved outlook. That may temper enthusiasm, particularly given the stock’s elevated valuation. Waters valuation discussion

Waters Company Profile

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) develops and manufactures analytical technologies used to measure, identify and characterize chemical and biological substances. Its customers include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, industrial manufacturers, academic and government laboratories, and organizations involved in food, environmental and clinical testing.

The company’s product portfolio includes high-performance liquid chromatography and ultra-performance liquid chromatography systems, mass spectrometers, chromatography columns and consumables, and laboratory software for data management and analysis.