August 10, 2025 a 09:00 pm
WAT: Analysts Ratings - Waters Corporation
Waters Corporation has shown a significant evolution in analyst recommendations over recent months. With a strong focus on high-performance analytical instruments, the market sentiment reflects a steady increase in hold recommendations, indicating a cautious stance among analysts. The balance between buy and strong buy ratings suggests moderate confidence in medium-term performance amidst a dynamic business environment.
Historical Stock Grades
The most recent data indicates a strong tilt towards hold ratings, with a total of 12 hold recommendations in August 2025. There is a notable absence of sell or strong sell ratings, which might imply a stable market perception of the company's value.
| Rating | Count | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Strong Buy | 2 | |
| Buy | 5 | |
| Hold | 12 | |
| Sell | 0 | |
| Strong Sell | 0 |
Sentiment Development
- Over the past months, there has been a consistent trend towards a more cautious outlook, as indicated by the increase in hold ratings from earlier in the year.
- The strong buy recommendations peaked in mid-2024, but have seen a reduction since then.
- The total count of recommendations has remained steady, reflecting a stable level of analyst attention.
- The hold category has seen the most growth, suggesting a market consensus towards risk aversion.
Percentage Trends
- Strong buy recommendations have decreased from 5 to 2 over the last 12 months, highlighting a shift to more conservative ratings.
- The hold category's percentage has risen, indicating a prevalent sentiment of maintaining current positions among analysts.
- There has been an observable shift towards more neutral positions, with buy ratings declining slightly.
- This trend points to increased caution, likely influenced by global economic factors affecting the specialty measurement industry.
Latest Analyst Recommendations
| Date | New Recommendation | Last Recommendation | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08-05 | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Wells Fargo |
| 2025-08-05 | Hold | Hold | Deutsche Bank |
| 2025-08-04 | Buy | Buy | Jefferies |
| 2025-07-16 | Outperform | Outperform | Baird |
| 2025-07-15 | Equal Weight | Overweight | Wells Fargo |
Analyst Recommendations with Change of Opinion
| Date | New Recommendation | Last Recommendation | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-07-15 | Equal Weight | Overweight | Wells Fargo |
| 2025-03-31 | Overweight | Sector Weight | Keybanc |
| 2025-03-26 | Outperform | Neutral | Baird |
| 2025-02-13 | Sector Outperform | Sector Perform | Scotiabank |
| 2025-02-10 | Equal Weight | Underweight | Barclays |
Interpretation
The market sentiment for Waters Corporation implies a moderate level of confidence, reflecting stability yet cautious optimism. Analysts exhibit a stable, neutral-to-positive outlook, with a noticeable trend towards holding positions. The lack of sell recommendations suggests confidence in the company's resilience. However, the shift from strong buy to hold recommendations could indicate concerns over macroeconomic factors or industry-specific challenges.
Conclusion
The current analyst ratings for WAT reveal a cautious yet stable sentiment. While the increase in hold recommendations points towards risk aversion, the continued presence of buy recommendations reflects underlying confidence in the company's operational strategies. Analysts are currently maintaining a neutral stance, likely driven by external economic conditions but demonstrating faith in Waters Corporation's long-term prospects. The decrease in strong buy ratings highlights potential industry headwinds, yet the absence of sell movements suggests robust company fundamentals.