NS Partners Ltd Sells 1,347 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

NS Partners Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 17.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,511 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,347 shares during the quarter. NS Partners Ltd’s holdings in Waters were worth $2,442,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pilgrim Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waters in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $466,131,171,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Waters in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,182,191,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in Waters during the second quarter worth approximately $623,921,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Waters during the fourth quarter worth approximately $265,751,000. Finally, Veritas Asset Management LLP grew its holdings in Waters by 112.3% during the fourth quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP now owns 1,241,206 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $471,447,000 after purchasing an additional 656,436 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Waters Price Performance

Shares of WAT stock opened at $414.94 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $388.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $349.22. Waters Corporation has a one year low of $282.77 and a one year high of $426.22. The firm has a market cap of $40.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 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 (NYSE:WAT) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. Waters had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 3.58%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 113.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.95 earnings per share. Waters has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.950-4.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.650 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $430.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 price target on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group raised their target price on Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $424.35.

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.