Waters (NYSE:WAT) Issues Q3 Earnings Guidance

Waters (NYSE:WAT) updated its third quarter earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided EPS guidance of $2.60-$2.70 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of $2.88. The company issued revenue guidance of $708.1-$722.4, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $733.15 million. Waters also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 11.550-11.650 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Waters from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an in-line rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Waters in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a hold rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Waters from $330.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Waters from $325.00 to $363.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waters presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $310.58.

Waters Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of WAT stock traded down $6.87 on Friday, reaching $345.66. 696,557 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 446,807. The stock has a market cap of $20.52 billion, a PE ratio of 33.92, a P/E/G ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 0.95. Waters has a one year low of $231.90 and a one year high of $367.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $303.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $321.77.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $709.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $700.09 million. Waters had a return on equity of 56.81% and a net margin of 20.71%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Waters will post 11.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Waters

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

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.