Waters (NYSE:WAT) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Waters (NYSE:WAT) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08, Zacks reports. Waters had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 49.93%. Waters updated its Q1 2025 guidance to 2.170-2.250 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance to 12.700-13.000 EPS.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of WAT stock traded down $26.40 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $378.89. The company had a trading volume of 733,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 426,741. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $390.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $363.72. Waters has a one year low of $279.24 and a one year high of $423.56. The firm has a market cap of $22.50 billion, a PE ratio of 36.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 2.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on WAT. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Waters from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $332.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $388.64.

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.