Waters Corp (WAT)
NYSE:WAT
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Waters
(NYSE:WAT)
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Rating:66Neutral
Price Target:
$323.00
▲(1.68% Upside)
Action:ReiteratedDate:03/24/26
The score is supported primarily by strong profitability and cash conversion, reinforced by constructive 2026 guidance and synergy targets from the BD combination. It is held back by weak technicals (below key moving averages with negative MACD) and a relatively high P/E with no dividend yield provided.
Positive Factors
High profitability and margins
Sustained high gross and net margins indicate durable pricing power and efficient cost structure across instruments, consumables and services. These margins provide cushion for R&D and integration spending, supporting long‑term earnings resilience even if revenue growth moderates.
Negative Factors
Modest recent revenue growth
Revenue growth has cooled to low single digits, constraining upside from operating leverage. Slower top‑line expansion reduces potential incremental operating margin gains and makes EPS improvement more reliant on cost synergies and buybacks than organic volume gains.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
High profitability and margins
Sustained high gross and net margins indicate durable pricing power and efficient cost structure across instruments, consumables and services. These margins provide cushion for R&D and integration spending, supporting long‑term earnings resilience even if revenue growth moderates.
Read all positive factors
Waters (WAT) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$31.16B
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)1.07M
Price to Earnings (P/E)35.2
Beta (1Y)0.75
Revenue Growth6.90%
EPS Growth3.86%
CountryUS
Employees7,600
SectorHealthcare
Sector Strength45
IndustryMedical - Diagnostics & Research
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)4.53
Shares Outstanding98,101,870
10 Day Avg. Volume788,634
30 Day Avg. Volume1,066,932
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio75.62
Price to Book (P/B)8.83
Price to Sales (P/S)7.14
P/FCF Ratio41.87
Enterprise Value/Market Cap0.64
Enterprise Value/Revenue6.28
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit10.65
Enterprise Value/Ebitda19.38
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$382.73Price Target Upside20.49% Upside
Rating ConsensusModerate Buy
Number of Analyst Covering16
EPS Forecast (FY)14.39
Revenue Forecast (FY)$6.42B
Waters Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Waters Corporation, a specialty measurement company, 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-p...
How the Company Makes Money
Waters makes money primarily by selling analytical instruments and the recurring products and services that support those systems over their operating life. Key revenue streams include: (1) Instrument sales: Revenue from the sale of LC, LC-MS/MS, ...
Waters Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Any
Total Recurring Revenue
Measures the revenue from ongoing customer subscriptions or services, indicating the stability and predictability of the company’s income stream.
Measures the revenue from ongoing customer subscriptions or services, indicating the stability and predictability of the company’s income stream.
Data provided by:
The Fly
The FlyWaters Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Feb 09, 2026
(Q4-2025)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:May 12, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call conveyed strong operational execution, continued product-led growth (especially LC‑MS and chemistry), improved commercial KPIs, robust free cash flow and a completed acquisition with defined synergy targets and industry‑leading combined guidance. Near‑term challenges center on underperformance in the acquired BD franchises (China/POC/export timing), TA weakness, short‑term timing effects from the Empower subscription transition, and higher pro forma leverage and dilution. Management has laid out conservative baselines and actionable synergy and commercial plans, suggesting upside if execution is successful.Positive Updates
Strong Q4 Revenue and EPS
Q4 sales of $932 million, up 7% reported and 6% constant currency; adjusted EPS $4.53 (GAAP EPS $3.77). Recurring revenue grew 9% in the quarter, supporting margin strength.
Negative Updates
Underperformance in Acquired BD Businesses
BD Biosciences & Diagnostic Solutions results came in below expectations in Q4 due to weaker China demand (diagnostics consumption reductions / DRG), U.S. government shutdown-related export delays, and a milder flu season impacting POC. Management assumes ~2.5% underlying growth for the acquired business in 2026 and expects a low single-digit revenue decline in the partial Q1 contribution (~$480M).
Read all updates
Q4-2025 Updates
Positive
Negative
Strong Q4 Revenue and EPS
Q4 sales of $932 million, up 7% reported and 6% constant currency; adjusted EPS $4.53 (GAAP EPS $3.77). Recurring revenue grew 9% in the quarter, supporting margin strength.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Waters guided to stand‑alone 2026 organic constant‑currency revenue growth of 5.5%–7% (with a roughly +0.5% FX tailwind), expects the acquired BD Biosciences & Diagnostic Solutions business to contribute ~$3.0B of revenue in 2026 (assumed ~2.5% underlying owned‑period growth) and to realize ~$50M of revenue synergies (producing ~$25M of incremental adjusted EBIT) plus ~$55M of cost synergies in 2026; together this implies total reported 2026 revenue of ~$6.405B–$6.455B and a blended year‑over‑year growth of ~5.3% at the midpoint, an adjusted operating margin of ~28.1% and full‑year adjusted EPS of $14.30–$14.50 (up 8.9%–10.4%, including $0.10 of transaction accretion). First‑quarter 2026 guidance assumes stand‑alone organic CC growth of 7%–9% (reported stand‑alone revenue ~$718M–$731M), BD partial‑quarter revenue of ~$480M (low‑single‑digit decline), for combined Q1 revenue of ~$1.198B–$1.211B; Q1 adjusted EPS is guided to $2.25–$2.35 (flat to +4.4%), with stand‑alone Q1 EPS of $2.50 (≈10% growth). Additional notable assumptions: pro forma net debt of roughly $4.6B–$4.7B (~2.4x net debt/EBITDA) with a path below 2x within ~18 months, pro forma net interest ~$179M, full‑year tax rate ~16.6%, full‑year average diluted shares ~94.3M (closing share count 98.4M) and Q1 average share count ~82M.Waters Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
84
Very Positive
Balance Sheet
72
Positive
Cash Flow
78
Positive
| Breakdown | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | |||||
| Total Revenue | 3.17B | 2.96B | 2.96B | 2.97B | 2.79B |
| Gross Profit | 1.83B | 1.76B | 1.76B | 1.72B | 1.63B |
| EBITDA | 1.01B | 1.04B | 1.00B | 1.02B | 982.81M |
| Net Income | 642.63M | 637.83M | 642.23M | 707.75M | 692.84M |
Balance Sheet | |||||
| Total Assets | 5.08B | 4.55B | 4.63B | 3.28B | 3.09B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 587.83M | 325.36M | 395.97M | 481.39M | 569.28M |
| Total Debt | 1.41B | 1.70B | 2.44B | 1.66B | 1.60B |
| Total Liabilities | 2.52B | 2.73B | 3.48B | 2.78B | 2.73B |
| Stockholders Equity | 2.56B | 1.83B | 1.15B | 504.49M | 367.55M |
Cash Flow | |||||
| Free Cash Flow | 539.81M | 619.64M | 442.18M | 428.20M | 579.01M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 652.55M | 762.12M | 602.81M | 611.66M | 747.27M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -152.25M | -144.02M | -1.44B | -107.97M | -231.63M |
| Financing Cash Flow | -237.21M | -696.67M | 754.95M | -509.63M | -438.27M |
Waters Technical Analysis
Negative
317.65
Price Trends
320.69
Negative
355.27
Negative
336.68
Negative
Market Momentum
-1.91
Negative
58.22
Neutral
89.05
Negative
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For WAT, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 317.65 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 299.46, below the 50-day MA of 320.69, and below the 200-day MA of 336.68, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -1.91 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 58.22 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 89.05 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for WAT.
Waters Risk Analysis
Waters disclosed 2 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Waters reported the most risks in the "Legal & Regulatory" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Waters Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (51)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
67 Neutral | $136.47B | 44.80 | 6.99% | 0.53% | 2.90% | -4.81% | |
67 Neutral | $46.56B | 51.15 | 69.78% | ― | 8.39% | 21.44% | |
66 Neutral | $31.16B | 35.17 | 28.52% | ― | 6.90% | 3.86% | |
66 Neutral | $32.61B | 31.05 | 19.73% | 0.72% | 6.73% | 3.34% | |
66 Neutral | $27.13B | 33.06 | -487.21% | ― | 4.77% | 7.93% | |
63 Neutral | $185.91B | 32.34 | 13.15% | 0.30% | 3.91% | 7.09% | |
51 Neutral | $7.86B | -0.30 | -43.30% | 2.27% | 22.53% | -2.21% |
* Healthcare Sector Average
WAT
Waters
317.65
-7.57
-2.33%
A
Agilent
115.06
13.19
12.94%
DHR
Danaher
192.99
5.55
2.96%
IDXX
Idexx Laboratories
584.75
193.81
49.58%
MTD
Mettler-Toledo
1,335.00
293.10
28.13%
TMO
Thermo Fisher
500.46
63.92
14.64%
Waters Corporate Events
Business Operations and StrategyPrivate Placements and Financing
Waters Subsidiary Completes $3.5 Billion Senior Notes Offering
Positive
Mar 23, 2026
On March 23, 2026, Augusta SpinCo Corporation, a subsidiary of Waters Corporation, completed a $3.5 billion public offering of senior unsecured notes across multiple maturities, all fully and unconditionally guaranteed by Waters and certain of its...
Business Operations and StrategyFinancial DisclosuresM&A TransactionsRegulatory Filings and Compliance
Waters Details Financial Impact of Recent SpinCo Acquisition
Positive
Mar 16, 2026
Waters Corporation has filed a current report in connection with an upcoming Form S-3 shelf registration and has furnished detailed historical and pro forma financial information related to Becton, Dickinson and Company’s former Biosciences ...
Business Operations and StrategyExecutive/Board ChangesM&A TransactionsPrivate Placements and Financing
Waters Closes Reverse Morris Trust, Forms Expanded Life Sciences Leader
Positive
Feb 9, 2026
On February 9, 2026, Waters completed its previously announced Reverse Morris Trust combination with BD’s Biosciences Diagnostic Solutions businesses, creating a larger life sciences and diagnostics group with Waters shareholders owning 60....
Business Operations and StrategyFinancial DisclosuresM&A TransactionsShareholder Meetings
Waters shareholders approve transformative BD business combination
Positive
Jan 27, 2026
On January 27, 2026, Waters shareholders overwhelmingly approved the issuance of Waters common stock to shareholders of Becton, Dickinson and Company in connection with the planned combination of BD’s Biosciences Diagnostic Solutions busine...
Business Operations and StrategyLegal ProceedingsM&A TransactionsRegulatory Filings and ComplianceShareholder Meetings
Waters Issues Supplemental Disclosures to Keep Merger on Track
Negative
Jan 16, 2026
On July 13, 2025, Waters Corporation signed definitive agreements with Becton, Dickinson and Company to execute a Reverse Morris Trust transaction under which BD will spin off its Biosciences and Diagnostic Solutions business into Augusta SpinCo C...
Business Operations and StrategyFinancial DisclosuresM&A TransactionsRegulatory Filings and Compliance
Waters Highlights Investor Update and Spin-Off Transaction Progress
Positive
Jan 12, 2026
Waters Corporation plans to present an investor presentation at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on January 12, 2026, where President and CEO Udit Batra will provide high-level commentary on the company’s business performance, with a tr...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.