Waters (NYSE:WAT) Given New $536.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Waters (NYSE:WAT) had its target price hoisted by analysts at Citigroup from $470.00 to $536.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Citigroup‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 14.53% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on WAT. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Waters in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Waters from $400.00 to $440.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Waters from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Barclays raised their price objective on Waters from $500.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $470.00 target price on Waters in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $475.48.

Waters Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE WAT traded up $8.09 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $467.99. 1,086,213 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 969,306. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $432.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $371.16. Waters has a one year low of $282.77 and a one year high of $482.28. The company has a market cap of $45.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 116.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.16.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.75 billion. Waters had a net margin of 3.58% and a return on equity of 11.27%. Waters’s revenue was up 120.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.40 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Waters will post 14.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In other Waters news, Director Christopher Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of Waters stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,086,515.52. The trade was a 16.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waters

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waters in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the third quarter worth about $27,000. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Vision Retirement LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

More Waters News

Here are the key news stories impacting Waters this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results beat expectations and guidance rose. Adjusted EPS was $4.10 versus roughly $4.00 expected, while revenue of $1.767 billion topped estimates. Organic revenue grew 9% (10% in constant currency), and the company raised its full-year 2026 outlook. The reported 121% year-over-year revenue increase also reflects the impact of acquisitions. Waters Q3 2026 results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised price targets. TD Cowen and Barclays lifted targets to $530, RBC to $525, and KeyCorp to $500; each maintained a positive rating, indicating further potential upside in their view. TD Cowen rating Barclays rating RBC rating KeyCorp rating
• Positive Sentiment: MOBILion acquisition expands Waters’ proteomics capabilities. Its high-resolution ion-mobility technology adds to Waters’ mass-spectrometry portfolio and is aimed at supporting faster, data-intensive research and AI-enabled drug discovery. MOBILion acquisition announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its target but remains neutral. Its new $470 target is close to the then-current share price, suggesting limited upside under its assessment. JPMorgan rating

About Waters

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) develops and manufactures analytical technologies used to measure, identify and characterize chemical and biological substances. Its customers include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, industrial manufacturers, academic and government laboratories, and organizations involved in food, environmental and clinical testing.

The company’s product portfolio includes high-performance liquid chromatography and ultra-performance liquid chromatography systems, mass spectrometers, chromatography columns and consumables, and laboratory software for data management and analysis.