WAT

BuyPremium Grower

Waters Corporation · Healthcare · United States · $44.5B cap · $414.0M/day traded

$476.88 +1.8% · close 28 Oct · scored 29 Oct

Premium Grower: Strong business with the market behind it, priced at a premium.

66
StockRank
Get score and insider alerts

Report expected 30 Oct: the next-year EPS estimate has been little changed over the last 14 weeks.

Quality
64
Value
19
Momentum
78

As of 29 Oct 2026, MoatMap's StockRank for Waters Corporation (WAT) is 66/100, ranked against 24,000+ stocks in 35 markets (Quality 64, Value 19, Momentum 78, each scored against its sector).

Does StockRank work? Each month we publish how every decile did, whichever way it went. See the record →

P/E (TTM)
114.9x
peers 27.2x
ROE
1.9%
peers -30.5%
D/E
0.4x
peers 0.2x
Dividend %
—
trailing yield

ABOUT WATERS CORPORATION

Read

Waters Corporation develops and manufactures analytical laboratory instruments, software, and services for liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermal analysis, serving pharmaceutical, life science, and industrial research. It is a market leader in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry, benefiting from a deeply embedded installed base, proprietary technologies, and high customer switching costs. Waters is a critical enabler of scientific research and quality control across diverse industries.

FINANCIAL SUMMARY (USD)

Year2022202320242025CAGRTTM2026E2027EFwd CAGR
Revenue3.0B3.0B3.0B3.2B2.1%4.6B6.5B7.1B50.1%
EPS11.8010.8710.7510.80-2.9%3.9511.9913.6112.3%
Shares59.1M59.2M59.4M59.5M+0.8%————
Debt1.7B2.4B1.7B1.5B-3.6%5.5B———
Equity504.5M1.2B1.8B2.6B71.9%————
Op CF611.7M602.8M762.1M652.6M2.2%549.6M———
Inv CF-108.0M-1.4B-143.1M-152.3M—————
Fin CF-509.6M755.0M-696.7M-237.2M—————
Loading 1Y...
PRICE (1Y) · USD+11.0%
42143544946347717 Sep8 Oct28 Oct
SMA 50SMA 200

Price checkIn an uptrendExperimental

Above its 200-day average and 1% below its 52-week high.

SwingsAverage

Calmer than 62% of stocks we rank over the past year (35% a year).

How this is worked out

StockRank judges the business. The price check reads only the chart: it is the price side of the Momentum score, in words.

The rules: Still falling is a new 52-week low in the last two weeks, at least 25% below the high. Finding a floor is no new low since. Turning up is 20 or more trading days without a new low, at least 10% off it, and back above a rising 50-day average. In an uptrend is above the 200-day average and within 15% of the high.

In 2,112 US drawdowns since 2001, buying while the price was still falling was followed by a further 20% drop 42% of the time. Waiting for a turn like this one cut that to 33%, at about 7% higher prices and with no better returns. Part of that cut is simply not buying: 13% of falls never turned, and waiting kept those out. Among turns that were bought, 38% still fell another 20%, and 33% of turns were followed by a new low within six months. The benefit was largest in crashes such as 2008 and 2020.

What it measures: day-to-day price moves over the past year, as a yearly figure, ranked against every stock we cover. Very calm under 20% a year, Calm 20 to 30%, Average 30 to 40%, Bumpy 40 to 55%, Very bumpy above that.

What we found: across about 13,500 stocks in 34 markets (2002 to 2025), past swings were a good guide to the next year's, and bumpier stocks fell further. How much further changed too much between eras to put a number on it.

Calm is not safe: a calm stock can still slide steadily.

Rules fixed before any data was fetched. Describes the chart, not a recommendation.

Close
$476.88
RSI (14)
78.3
52-Week Range-1.1% from high
Low $282.77High $482.28

SCORE BREAKDOWN

Quality
64
ROIC
21.5%91.4
ROE
1.9%48.2
GP/Assets
51.5%88.4
Op. Margin
9.4%62.4
FCF/Assets
5.2%69.8
Piotroski
431.0
Int. Cover
11.9x64.5
D/E Ratio
0.36x36.7
Current Ratio
1.86x36.8
Value
19
P/E (TTM)
114.9x6.8
EV/EBITDA
34.1x17.0
P/FCF
168.8x7.7
P/B
2.9x43.2
P/S
9.6x24.3
Div Yield
—N/A
Momentum
78
52W High %
99%97.5
RS 6M
55%91.5
SMA 50/200
1.16x85.6
EPS Rev 4W
+0.0%62.9
EPS Rev 12W
+0.3%60.6
EPS Improve
+319%92.6
Q Growth
—N/A

FUNDAMENTALS

Market Cap
$44.5B
P/E (Forward)
27.4x
Gross Margin
56.3%

SECTOR PEERS

Closest peers in Healthcare, ranked by industry match, size, and score similarity. Cross-listings of WAT are excluded.

TickerCompanyMkt CapStockRankSignal
WATWaters Corporation(you)$44.5B66Buy
IDXXIDEXX Laboratories, Inc.$44.1B65Hold
IQVIQVIA Holdings Inc.$46.0B69Buy
AAgilent Technologies, Inc.$48.8B72Buy
ILMNIllumina, Inc.$40.7B76Buy
RVTYRevvity, Inc.$17.7B65Buy
CRLCharles River Laboratories International, Inc.$16.6B62Hold
NTRANatera, Inc.$58.2B46Hold
LHLabcorp Holdings Inc.$26.7B83Strong Buy
DGXQuest Diagnostics Incorporated$26.7B83Strong Buy

Peer medians: ROE -30.5% · P/E 27.2x · Gross margin 63.4%

Company Deep Dive

Business segments breakdown, earnings transcript analysis, management credibility scoring, competitive landscape, and scenario modelling.

Request Deep Dive(50 Feathers)

Waters Corporation (WAT): Stock Score Summary

Waters Corporation (WAT) has a MoatMap StockRank of 66/100 based on Quality (64/100), Value (19/100), and Momentum (78/100) factor scores. The current signal is BUY.

Waters Corporation develops and manufactures analytical laboratory instruments, software, and services for liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermal analysis, serving pharmaceutical, life science, and industrial research. It is a market leader in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry, benefiting from a deeply embedded installed base, proprietary technologies, and high customer switching costs. Waters is a critical enabler of scientific research and quality control across diverse industries.

Key Financial Metrics

Price$476.88
Market Cap$44.5B
P/E (TTM)114.85
P/E (Forward)27.41
Price/Book2.93
Return on Equity1.9%
Return on Invested Capital21.5%
Debt/Equity0.36x
Gross Margin56.3%
Operating Margin9.4%
Revenue Growth113.4%
Free Cash Flow$264M

Waters Corporation operates in the Diagnostics & Research industry, part of the Healthcare sector (United States).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Waters Corporation’s (WAT) StockRank?
MoatMap’s StockRank for Waters Corporation (WAT) is 66/100, with a Buy signal. It is a composite of Quality (64), Value (19), and Momentum (78), each scored against its sector. The composite is then ranked across MoatMap’s universe of 24,000+ stocks.
Does Waters Corporation have an economic moat?
Waters Corporation (WAT) has a Quality factor score of 64/100. The Quality factor combines ROIC, Piotroski F-Score, and leverage: the financial fingerprints of a durable competitive advantage. A Quality score above 70 typically indicates a company with the characteristics of a moated business.
Is Waters Corporation a buy, hold, or sell?
MoatMap’s current signal for Waters Corporation (WAT) is Buy, based on a StockRank of 66/100. Signals are derived mechanically from the StockRank composite and should be one input among many; combine with your own thesis on management, competitive position, and valuation.
What sector is Waters Corporation in?
Waters Corporation (WAT) operates in the Healthcare sector, specifically the Diagnostics & Research industry (United States).