Milford Funds Ltd. Purchases 68,768 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Milford Funds Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 103.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 135,437 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 68,768 shares during the period. Milford Funds Ltd.’s holdings in Waters were worth $50,794,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In other news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.94, for a total value of $1,442,930.44. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,808 shares in the company, valued at $7,086,515.52. This trade represents a 16.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Waters Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Waters stock opened at $411.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $40.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 102.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.19. The company’s 50 day moving average is $377.18 and its 200 day moving average is $346.31. Waters Corporation has a twelve month low of $282.77 and a twelve month high of $420.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Waters from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waters in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 target price for the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Waters from $425.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen raised Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $408.00 to $475.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $420.35.

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.