Q3 2024 Earnings Forecast for Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Issued By Leerink Partnrs

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) – Equities researchers at Leerink Partnrs lowered their Q3 2024 EPS estimates for Waters in a research note issued on Thursday, August 1st. Leerink Partnrs analyst P. Souda now forecasts that the medical instruments supplier will post earnings of $2.70 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $2.94. Leerink Partnrs currently has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Waters’ current full-year earnings is $11.62 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Waters’ Q4 2024 earnings at $4.12 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $11.65 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.48 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $3.00 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $3.03 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $4.41 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $12.91 EPS.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $709.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $700.09 million. Waters had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 56.81%. Waters’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.80 earnings per share.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on WAT. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $325.00 to $363.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Waters from $319.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. SVB Leerink upgraded shares of Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $325.00 to $375.00 in a report on Thursday. 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 note on Wednesday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $310.58.

Waters Price Performance

WAT stock opened at $345.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $20.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.92, a PEG ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Waters has a 12-month low of $231.90 and a 12-month high of $367.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $303.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $321.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Richard H. Fearon acquired 1,000 shares of Waters stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,283.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Richard H. Fearon acquired 1,000 shares of Waters stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $332.90 per share, with a total value of $332,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,283.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher A. Kuebler sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.64, for a total transaction of $1,446,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,716 shares in the company, valued at $5,321,894.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAT. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd purchased a new position in Waters in the fourth quarter valued at about $361,839,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waters during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $206,286,000. Nuance Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 356.0% during the 4th quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 419,363 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $138,067,000 after buying an additional 327,389 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 215.7% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 425,219 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $139,995,000 after buying an additional 290,511 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Waters by 1,095.5% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 200,705 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $66,078,000 after buying an additional 183,916 shares in the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Company Profile

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.