Leerink Partnrs Comments on Waters Co.’s Q3 2024 Earnings (NYSE:WAT)

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) – Leerink Partnrs boosted their Q3 2024 EPS estimates for Waters in a report released on Tuesday, May 7th. Leerink Partnrs analyst P. Souda now anticipates that the medical instruments supplier will post earnings per share of $2.98 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $2.93. The consensus estimate for Waters’ current full-year earnings is $11.89 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Waters’ Q4 2024 earnings at $4.16 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $4.42 EPS.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Waters from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Waters from $350.00 to $358.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $306.70.

Waters Trading Up 3.9 %

WAT opened at $336.42 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.01, a P/E/G ratio of 6.39 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. Waters has a twelve month low of $231.90 and a twelve month high of $363.80. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $332.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $311.03.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.11. Waters had a return on equity of 81.30% and a net margin of 21.72%. The business had revenue of $636.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $635.57 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waters by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,837,662 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,251,163,000 after acquiring an additional 64,525 shares in the last quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd purchased a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $361,839,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Waters by 3.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,092,459 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $299,563,000 after purchasing an additional 32,059 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Waters by 129.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 973,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $322,017,000 after buying an additional 550,112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 832,895 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $228,388,000 after buying an additional 212,754 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.01% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Waters

In other news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total transaction of $177,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $799,965. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

About Waters

Waters Corporation provides analytical workflow solutions in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Waters and TA. The company designs, manufactures, sells, and services high and ultra-performance liquid chromatography, as well as mass spectrometry (MS) technology systems and support products, including chromatography columns, other consumable products, and post-warranty service plans.