NEW YORK – Waters on Wednesday reported that its fourth quarter revenues rose 6 percent compared to the year-ago period, while full-year 2024 revenues were flat.
For the three months ended Dec. 31, Waters' revenues were $872.7 million versus $819.5 million in Q4 2023 and above the consensus Wall Street estimate of $856.9 million. On a constant-currency basis, Q4 sales grew 8 percent year over year.
Instrument system sales in the quarter rose 6 percent as reported and 8 percent in constant currency. The firm's recurring revenues, which include service and precision chemistries, rose 7 percent as reported and 9 percent in constant currency.
For Q4, Waters posted net income of $231.4 million, or $3.88 per share, compared to net income of $216.2 million, or $3.65 per share, in Q4 2023. On an adjusted basis, the company reported EPS of $4.10, beating analysts' consensus estimate of $4.07 per share.
R&D spending in the quarter was up 5 percent year over year to $46.9 million from $44.4 million, while SG&A costs fell 4 percent to $173.3 million from $180.4 million.
Revenues for full-year 2024 were $2.96 billion, flat compared to the prior year and slightly surpassing the Wall Street estimate of $2.94 billion.
Net income for the year was $637.8 million, or $10.71 per share, compared to $642.2 million, or $10.84 per share, in 2023. Adjusted EPS was $11.86, beating analysts' consensus estimate of $11.80 per share.
For full-year 2024, R&D spending was $183.0 million, up 5 percent from $174.9 million in 2023. SG&A spending was down 6 percent to $690.1 million from $736.0 million the year before.
Waters ended the year with $325.4 million in cash, cash equivalents, and investments.
For Q1 2025, Waters projects constant currency revenue growth of between 4 percent and 7 percent and adjusted EPS between $2.17 and $2.25. Currency translation is expected to decrease Q1 revenues by 3 percent, making for reported revenue growth of between 1 percent and 4 percent.
Constant currency revenue growth for full-year 2025 is expected to be between 4.5 percent and 7.0 percent, with anticipated adjusted EPS between $12.70 and $13.00. Currency translation is expected to decrease full-year 2025 revenues by 2 percent, making for reported revenue growth of between 2.5 percent and 5 percent.
Analysts are expecting Q1 earnings of $2.43 per share and full-year 2024 earnings of $12.90 per share.
In Wednesday morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange, shares of Waters were down less than 7 percent to $378.77.