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

Milford Funds Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 103.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 135,437 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 68,768 shares during the period. Milford Funds Ltd. owned 0.14% of Waters worth $50,794,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. boosted its holdings in Waters by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 7,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,890,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Waters by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $638,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Waters by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co raised its holdings in Waters by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 1,330 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Waters by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $440.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Waters from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $408.00 to $475.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. HSBC lifted their price objective on Waters from $415.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $387.00 target price on Waters in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $420.35.

Waters Price Performance

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

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.62 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.95 earnings per share. The business’s 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. Analysts anticipate that Waters Corporation will post 14.57 earnings per share 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.