Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Sells 7,162 Shares of Waters Corporation $WAT

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co cut its holdings in Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) by 72.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 7,162 shares during the quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Waters were worth $1,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waters during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV acquired a new stake in Waters in the first quarter worth $27,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT grew its holdings in Waters by 121.2% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 73 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Vision Retirement LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Bollard Group LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the first quarter valued at $29,000. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WAT. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. HSBC boosted their target price on Waters from $415.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Waters in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $435.00 price target on the stock. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $420.00 price objective on shares of Waters in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Waters in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $420.35.

Waters Stock Up 0.4%

Waters stock opened at $412.37 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 102.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $381.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $347.02. Waters Corporation has a 1-year low of $282.77 and a 1-year high of $421.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, equities research analysts predict that Waters Corporation will post 14.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waters news, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 3,626 shares of the business’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 sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.