Wei Jiang Acquires 500 Shares of Waters (NYSE:WAT) Stock

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) Director Wei Jiang acquired 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $289.46 per share, with a total value of $144,730.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $996,031.86. This trade represents a 17.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Waters Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of WAT traded down $1.69 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $295.30. The company had a trading volume of 962,706 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,106,271. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $348.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $351.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.20. Waters Corporation has a 1 year low of $275.05 and a 1 year high of $414.15.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.50 by $0.03. Waters had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 34.79%. The business had revenue of $932.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.17 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.10 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Waters has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.300-14.500 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.350 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Waters Corporation will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting Waters

Here are the key news stories impacting Waters this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings and guidance support: Waters beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates in its Feb. 9 report and set FY26 EPS guidance (14.30–14.50) and Q1 guidance (2.25–2.35), providing near-term fundamental support for the stock. (Earnings release and guidance referenced from company disclosures.)
• Positive Sentiment: Insider purchase signals confidence: Director Wei Jiang bought 500 shares at an average $289.46 on March 16, increasing their stake ~17%, which can signal management-level confidence to investors. SEC Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Large $3.5B senior notes offering raises leverage concerns: Waters’ subsidiary Augusta SpinCo priced $3.5 billion of senior notes across 2027–2036 maturities (coupons ~4.32%–5.25%). While debt can be used for refinancing or strategic moves, the size and additional interest burden increase leverage and could pressure equity valuation until the use of proceeds and credit impact are clear. Waters Prices Offering of Senior Notes

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waters

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 225.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,551,010 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $465,008,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074,449 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 31.0% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,021,358 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,403,615,000 after purchasing an additional 950,687 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 44.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,689,693 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $806,397,000 after purchasing an additional 825,723 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Waters during the second quarter worth about $266,384,000. Finally, Veritas Asset Management LLP boosted 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 worth $471,447,000 after buying an additional 656,436 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. HSBC started coverage on shares of Waters in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $460.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Waters from $395.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wolfe Research raised Waters from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $480.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Waters from $423.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Sunday, February 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $393.84.

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.