KeyCorp Weighs in on Waters’ FY2025 Earnings (NYSE:WAT)

Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) – Research analysts at KeyCorp issued their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Waters in a report issued on Monday, March 31st. KeyCorp analyst P. Knight forecasts that the medical instruments supplier will earn $12.76 per share for the year. KeyCorp currently has a “Overweight” rating and a $460.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Waters’ current full-year earnings is $12.86 per share.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. Waters had a net margin of 21.56% and a return on equity of 46.31%.

WAT has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Waters from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Baird R W raised shares of Waters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Waters from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Waters from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.31.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of Waters stock opened at $355.43 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $385.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $373.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $21.12 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.00. Waters has a 12 month low of $279.24 and a 12 month high of $423.56.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waters

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WAT. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Waters by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,349 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,925,000 after acquiring an additional 807 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in Waters by 1.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 81,653 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $29,386,000 after buying an additional 934 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in Waters in the third quarter valued at approximately $229,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Waters by 13.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 2,578 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $928,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Waters by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,747 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $989,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. 94.01% of the stock is owned by 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.