Lincoln Capital LLC Takes Position in Waters Corporation $WAT

Lincoln Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,536 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $457,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 121.2% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in Waters during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Louisbourg Investments Inc. bought a new position in Waters in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE:WAT traded up $0.22 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $377.35. 502,288 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 878,968. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $358.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $346.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.20. Waters Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $275.05 and a fifty-two week high of $414.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.79.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on WAT. Barclays upped their price objective on Waters from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waters in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $410.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $400.37.

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.