Waters Corporation has beaten earnings estimates in all 4 of the last 4 quarters and posted exceptional revenue growth of 91% year-over-year, but negative price momentum with a falling on-balance-volume and a cash flow red flag — free cash flow was -112% of net income — create meaningful fundamental concerns.
Thesis pillars
- Perfect Earnings Beat Revenue Surge↑Improving
- Free Cash Flow Quality Red Flag↓Deteriorating
- Negative Momentum Falling Obv↓Deteriorating
- +1 more pillar — see the Why tab for full reasoning
Pillars as of Jul 3, 2026, based on the 10-K filed Feb 23, 2026· older than 90 days
Waters Corporation (WAT) Stock Analysis
Breakout setup
Healthcare · Diagnostics & Research
Hold if already holding. Not a fresh buy at $467.60, but acceptable to hold if already in. Reasons: Analyst target reached - limited upside remaining; Near 52-week high (3.0% away).
Waters Corporation manufactures liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermal analysis instruments for pharmaceutical, life science, and industrial markets, with approximately 69% of 2025 net sales outside the United States. Revenue comes from instrument systems,... Read more
Hold if already holding. Not a fresh buy at $467.60, but acceptable to hold if already in. Reasons: Analyst target reached - limited upside remaining; Near 52-week high (3.0% away). Chart setup: Golden cross, above all MAs, RSI 60, MACD bullish. Multiple concerning factors. Consider reducing position. | News modifier +2 (SELL_IF_HOLDING → HOLD_IF_HOLDING) Score 5.1/10, moderate confidence.
Passes 8/10 gates (positive momentum, clean insider activity, no SEC red flags, news boost analyst 0.40, news boost analyst cluster(4), earnings proximity 97d clear, semi cycle peak clear, materials cycle peak clear). Fails on favorable risk/reward ratio. Suitability: moderate.
About Waters Corporation
About Waters Corporation
Waters Corporation sourced approximately 69% of its 2025 net sales from outside the United States, serving pharmaceutical, life science, environmental, and industrial customers with liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermal analysis instrumentation developed over more than 65 years. The company closed the $16.8 billion BDS Business acquisition from Becton, Dickinson on February 9, 2026, reorganizing into four segments: Waters Analytical Sciences, Waters Biosciences, Waters Advanced Diagnostics, and Waters Materials Sciences. Prior to that transaction, two operating segments — Waters LC/MS and TA Instruments — were aggregated into a single reporting segment for financial purposes.
Waters earns revenue across three product lines that customers frequently use together: LC instrument systems and the chromatography columns they consume (replaced at regular intervals by quality-control laboratories to maintain separation accuracy), MS instrument systems used in drug discovery and clinical diagnostics, and TA thermal analysis and rheometry instruments. The pharmaceutical and life science industries represent the primary end markets, with LC mandated by the FDA, EPA, and their international counterparts for safety and efficacy testing across drug development, nutritional safety, and environmental monitoring. Manufacturing is concentrated in Ireland and the United Kingdom, with key subcontractors in Singapore handling portions of production and support services. The BDS Business adds BD's former specimen collection products, infectious disease and cancer diagnostics reagent systems, and flow cytometry tools for immunology and oncology research — materially broadening end-market exposure beyond analytical instruments.
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Waters' 69% international revenue share exposes the company to foreign currency movements, geopolitical disruptions, and government procurement policy shifts. China is the most explicitly flagged single-market risk: net sales there fell 10% in 2024 due to declining economic conditions, trade tensions, Chinese government tightening on procurement by state-funded customers, and increased local competition — before recovering 10% in 2025. Manufacturing in Ireland and the United Kingdom, combined with Singapore subcontractors, concentrates production in non-U.S. jurisdictions subject to their own regulatory and currency risks. The $4.0 billion of BDS Acquisition indebtedness assumed — a $3.5 billion tranche maturing February 2027 and a $500 million tranche maturing February 2028 — adds a refinancing risk layer to the internationally concentrated cost structure.
See also: Healthcare · Diagnostics & Research
From Waters Corporation's most recent 10-K filing, extracted June 16, 2026.
Recent developments
updated Oct 30, 2026Recent Developments — Waters Corporation
Latest news
- NEWS A Look at Waters Corp (WAT) After 3.6% Decline -- GF Value $422. - GuruFocus — GuruFocus Oct 30, 2026 negative
- NEWS Waters Corp. stock outperforms competitors on strong trading day - MarketWatch — MarketWatch Oct 28, 2026 positive
- NEWS Waters Gears Up to Report Q3 Results: How to Play the Stock? - Zacks Investment Research — Zacks Investment Research Oct 28, 2026 neutral
- NEWS Waters Gears Up to Report Q3 Results: How to Play the Stock? - Yahoo Finance — Yahoo Finance Oct 28, 2026 neutral
- NEWS Waters Corporation (WAT) Launches AI Peak Integration for Empower - TradingView — TradingView Oct 28, 2026 positive
Latest item Oct 30, 2026 · Generated 2026-11-05T11:59:11Z.
Upcoming dated catalysts
Thesis
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Quality Signals
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Model-generated analysis — not investment advice. Not a registered investment advisor. Past performance does not guarantee future results. How we score · Editorial policy
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Rating Breakdown
1 floor-breaker
Priced at a premium — multiples above sector norms. Needs delivery on growth + margins to justify.static
Price Targets
Position Sizing
Risk Alerts
Earnings
Verdict History
Frequently Asked Questions
Hold if already holding. Not a fresh buy at $467.60, but acceptable to hold if already in. Reasons: Analyst target reached - limited upside remaining; Near 52-week high (3.0% away). Chart setup: Golden cross, above all MAs, RSI 60, MACD bullish. Multiple concerning factors. Consider reducing position. | News modifier +2 (SELL_IF_HOLDING → HOLD_IF_HOLDING) Analyst target $423.74 reached (−9.4%), stop $434.87 (−7.5%), A.R:R -0.9:1. Score 5.1/10, moderate confidence.
Analyst target $423.74 reached (−9.4% from $467.60); no take-profit level is published. Analyst target $423.74 reached (−9.4%), stop $434.87 (−7.5%), A.R:R -0.9:1. Stop-loss: $434.87.
Analyst target reached - limited upside remaining; Near 52-week high (3.0% away); V7 low-quality RISK_OFF penalty: -0.5 (Q=4.1).
Waters Corporation trades at a P/E of 195.6 (forward 28.3). TrendMatrix value score: 3.2/10. Verdict: Hold.
28 analysts rate WAT, with a consensus score of 4.1/5. 22 analysts publish price targets averaging $471.
What does Waters Corporation do?Waters Corporation manufactures liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermal analysis instruments for...
Waters Corporation manufactures liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermal analysis instruments for pharmaceutical, life science, and industrial markets, with approximately 69% of 2025 net sales outside the United States. Revenue comes from instrument systems, consumable columns replaced at regular intervals, and post-warranty service plans; the company closed the $16.8 billion BDS Business acquisition from Becton, Dickinson in February 2026, adding diagnostics and biosciences segments.