Waters Holds Jefferies Buy Rating Despite Target Cut, with BD Merger Poised to Boost Long-Term Growth

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) is one of the best agriculture technology stocks to buy now. On August 4, 2025, Jefferies analyst Tycho Peterson reiterated a Buy rating on Waters while trimming the price target from $435 to $385.

The revision wasn’t a knock on the company’s strength, it was a tempered recalibration after a 12% post-merger dip. Jefferies called the Q2 earnings a “solid beat,” with revenue and EPS both exceeding consensus. A portion of the upside was front-loaded due to tariff pressures, but the firm emphasized that Waters is well-positioned to outperform in the back half of the year.

Despite trimming the target, Peterson expressed confidence in the trajectory: raised full-year guidance, strong recurring revenue, and a major upcoming merger with Becton Dickinson’s diagnostics arm all point to scale, synergies, and a wider moat. Jefferies noted that the BD merger is being underappreciated by the market and should ultimately reinforce Waters' long-term value proposition.

Waters Corporation (NYSE:WAT) is a global leader in analytical instruments and software, serving life sciences, food safety, and agriculture, and offering critical tools in everything from pesticide residue analysis to precision crop science.

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