Prudential PLC Sells 23,334 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Prudential PLC reduced its stake in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 95.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,235 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 23,334 shares during the period. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Waters were worth $469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WAT. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Waters in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 115.4% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 112 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. eCIO Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new position in Waters during the second quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Waters by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $423.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Sunday, February 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Waters from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Waters in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $425.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $394.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waters

In related news, Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $289.46 per share, with a total value of $144,730.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 3,441 shares in the company, valued at $996,031.86. This represents a 17.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Waters Stock Performance

NYSE WAT opened at $363.27 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $332.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $350.61. The stock has a market cap of $35.67 billion, a PE ratio of 46.16, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.21. 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 posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. Waters had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company’s revenue was up 91.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.25 earnings per share. Waters has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 14.400-14.600 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 14.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.