Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT) Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022 Financial Results

Highlights

• Fourth quarter sales of $859 million grew 3% as reported and 9% in constant currency
• Quarter led by double-digit instrument sales growth. Overall, Industrial grew mid-teens, while growth in all end markets remained robust
• Strong finish to the year delivered sales growth of 7% as reported and 12% in constant currency for 2022, with double-digit growth across all end-markets and regions
• After delivering strong commercial execution and revitalizing its portfolio, Waters is entering the next phase of its execution strategy with the acquisition of Wyatt Technology

MILFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT) today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full-year 2022.

Sales for the fourth quarter of 2022 were $859 million, an increase of 3% as reported and 9% in constant currency, compared to sales of $836 million for the fourth quarter of 2021.

On a GAAP basis, diluted earnings per share (EPS) for the fourth quarter of 2022 increased to $3.81, compared to $3.52 for the fourth quarter of 2021. On a non-GAAP basis, EPS was $3.84, compared to $3.67 for the fourth quarter of 2021. This includes a headwind of approximately 8% due to unfavorable foreign exchange.

For fiscal year 2022, the Company’s sales were $2,972 million, an increase of 7% as reported and 12% in constant currency, compared to sales of $2,786 million for fiscal year 2021.

On a GAAP basis, EPS for fiscal year 2022 increased to $11.73, compared to $11.17 for fiscal year 2021. On a non-GAAP basis, EPS increased by 7% to $12.02, compared to $11.20 in fiscal year 2021. This includes a headwind of approximately 9% due to unfavorable foreign exchange.

“After closing another very successful year, I would like to thank our Waters colleagues for their continued resilience and focus on innovation. Our results are a true testament to our sustained commercial momentum, revitalized portfolio, and the exceptional team we have in place,” said Dr. Udit Batra, President & CEO, Waters Corporation.

Dr. Batra continued, “2022 ended with an excellent fourth quarter, demonstrating continued strength across our portfolio and end markets. After two years of delivering strong results, we are excited to announce the next step in the execution of our growth strategy with the acquisition of Wyatt Technology.”

Fourth Quarter 2022

During the fourth quarter of 2022, sales into the pharmaceutical market were flat as reported and increased 6% in constant currency, sales into the industrial market increased 8% as reported and 14% in constant currency and sales into the academic and government markets increased 1% as reported and 8% in constant currency.

During the quarter, instrument system sales increased 5% as reported and 10% in constant currency, while recurring revenues, which represent the combination of service and precision chemistries, were flat as reported and increased 7% in constant currency.

Geographically, sales in Asia during the quarter decreased 1% as reported and increased 7% in constant currency (with China sales declining 6% as reported and 3% in constant currency), sales in the Americas increased 8% (with U.S. sales growing 8%) and sales in Europe increased 1% as reported and 11% in constant currency.

Full-Year 2022

For fiscal year 2022, sales into the pharmaceutical market increased 5% as reported and 10% in constant currency, sales into the industrial market increased 10% as reported and 15% in constant currency and sales into the academic and government markets increased 7% as reported and 13% in constant currency.

For fiscal year 2022, instrument system sales increased 11% as reported and 16% in constant currency, while recurring revenues increased 3% as reported and 9% in constant currency.

Geographically, sales in Asia for fiscal year 2022 increased 5% as reported and 12% in constant currency (with China sales growing 8% as reported and 10% in constant currency), sales in the Americas increased 14% (with U.S. sales growing 14%) and sales in Europe were flat as reported and increased 10% in constant currency.

Unless otherwise noted, sales growth and decline percentages are presented on an as-reported basis and are the same as the sales growth and decline percentages presented on a constant currency basis as compared with the same period in the prior year, each of which is detailed in the reconciliation of sales growth rates to constant currency growth rates in the tables below.

A description and reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP results appear in the tables below and can be found on the Company’s website www.waters.com in the Investor Relations section.

Full-Year and First Quarter 2023 Financial Guidance

Full-Year 2023 Financial Guidance

The Company expects full-year 2023 organic constant currency sales growth in the range of 5% to 6.5%. Currency translation is expected to decrease full-year organic sales growth by approximately 1%. The Wyatt transaction is expected to increase full-year reported sales growth by 2% to 3%. The resulting full-year 2023 reported sales growth is expected in the range of 6% to 8.5%.

The Company expects full-year 2023 non-GAAP EPS in the range of $12.55 to $12.75, which includes an estimated headwind of approximately 3% due to unfavorable foreign exchange. The Wyatt transaction is expected to temporarily decrease full-year 2023 non-GAAP EPS by approximately 1%. The Company expects the transaction to become accretive to non-GAAP EPS starting in the first quarter of 2024.

Please refer to the tables below for a reconciliation of the projected GAAP to non-GAAP financial outlook for the full-year.

First Quarter 2023 Financial Guidance

The Company expects first quarter 2023 constant currency sales growth in the range of 4% to 6%. Currency translation is expected to decrease first quarter sales growth by approximately 4%.

The Company expects first quarter 2023 non-GAAP EPS in the range of $2.55 to $2.65, which includes an estimated headwind of approximately 6% due to unfavorable foreign exchange.

Please refer to the tables below for a reconciliation of the projected GAAP to non-GAAP financial outlook for the first quarter.

Announcing Acquisition of Wyatt Technology Corporation

The company has also announced today that it has reached an agreement to acquire Wyatt Technology Corporation, a pioneer in innovative light scattering and field-flow fractionation instruments, software, accessories, and services, for $1.36 billion in cash, subject to certain adjustments. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023 subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. Please see today’s separate release for additional details.

Conference Call Details

Waters Corporation will webcast its fourth quarter and full-year 2022 financial results conference call today, February 15, 2023, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time. To listen to the call and see the accompanying slide presentation, please visit www.waters.com, select “Investors” under the “About Waters” section, navigate to “Events & Presentations,” and click on the “Webcast.” A replay will be available through at least March 1, 2023, at midnight Eastern Time on the same website by webcast and also by phone at (888) 293-8913.

About Waters Corporation

Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT), a global leader in analytical instruments and software, has pioneered chromatography, mass spectrometry and thermal analysis innovations serving the life, materials and food sciences for more than 60 years. With more than 8,200 employees worldwide, Waters operates directly in 35 countries, including 14 manufacturing facilities, and with products available in more than 100 countries. For more information, visit www.waters.com.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release contains financial measures, such as constant currency growth rate, adjusted operating income, adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per diluted share and adjusted free cash flow, among others, which are considered “non-GAAP” financial measures under applicable U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules and regulations. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered supplemental to, and not a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). The Company’s definitions of these non-GAAP measures may differ from similarly titled measures used by others. The non-GAAP financial measures used in this press release adjust for specified items that can be highly variable or difficult to predict. The Company generally uses these non-GAAP financial measures to facilitate management’s financial and operational decision-making, including evaluation of the Company’s historical operating results, comparison to competitors’ operating results and determination of management incentive compensation. These non-GAAP financial measures reflect an additional way of viewing aspects of the Company’s operations that, when viewed with GAAP results and the reconciliations to corresponding GAAP financial measures, may provide a more complete understanding of factors and trends affecting the Company’s business. Because non-GAAP financial measures exclude the effect of items that will increase or decrease the Company’s reported results of operations, management strongly encourages investors to review the Company’s consolidated financial statements and publicly filed reports in their entirety. Reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures are included in the tables accompanying this release.

Cautionary Statement

This release contains “forward-looking” statements regarding future results and events. For this purpose, any statements that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words “feels”, “believes”, “anticipates”, “plans”, “expects”, “intends”, “suggests”, “appears”, “estimates”, “projects” and similar expressions, whether in the negative or affirmative, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The Company’s actual future results may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements within this release for a variety of reasons, including and without limitation, risks related to the timing of the closing of the transaction, prospects for regulatory approval, the timing and success of integration efforts once the transaction is complete, expectations or ability to realize commercial success, the impact of this transaction, if successful, on the Company's business, anticipated progress on Waters' research programs, development of new analytical instruments and associated software or consumables, manufacturing development and capabilities, market prospects for its products and sales and earnings guidance; the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects, including: portions of our global workforce being unable to work fully and/or effectively due to working remotely, illness, quarantines, including the impact from the lockdown in China, government actions, facility closures or other reasons related to the pandemic, increased risks of cyber-attacks resulting from our temporary remote working model, disruptions in our manufacturing capabilities or to our supply chain and distribution network, volatility and uncertainty in global capital markets limiting our ability to access capital, customers being unable to make timely payments for purchases and volatility in demand for our products; foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations potentially affecting translation of the Company’s future non-U.S. operating results, particularly when a foreign currency weakens against the U.S. dollar; the impact on demand for the Company’s products, including delays or disruptions to our distribution network, among the Company’s various market sectors or geographies from economic, sovereign and political conditions and uncertainties, particularly regarding the effect of new or proposed tariff or trade regulations or changes in the interpretation or enforcement of existing regulations; the effect on the Company’s financial results from the United Kingdom exiting the European Union, as well as the Chinese government’s ongoing tightening of restrictions on procurement by government-funded customers; fluctuations in expenditures by the Company’s customers, in particular large pharmaceutical companies; introduction of competing products by other companies and loss of market share; pressures on prices from competitors and/or customers; regulatory, economic and competitive obstacles to new product introductions; lack of acceptance of new products; expansion of our business in developing markets; spending by certain end-markets; ability to obtain alternative sources for components and modules; and the possibility that future sales of new products related to acquisitions, which trigger contingent purchase payments, may exceed the Company’s expectations; other changes in demand for the Company’s products from the effect of mergers and acquisitions by the Company’s customers; increased regulatory burdens as the Company’s business evolves, especially with respect to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, among others; as well as regulatory, environmental, and logistical obstacles affecting the distribution of the Company’s products, completion of purchase order documentation and the ability of customers to obtain letters of credit or other financing alternatives; shifts in taxable income in jurisdictions with different effective tax rates; the outcome of tax examinations or changes in respective country legislation affecting the Company’s effective tax rate; the effect of the adoption of new accounting standards; the ability to access capital, maintain liquidity and service the Company’s debt in volatile market conditions, including any potential impact on the Company’s operations stemming from sustained inflation, particularly in the U.S., as a large portion of the Company’s cash is held and operating cash flows are generated outside the U.S.; environmental and logistical obstacles affecting the distribution of products and risks associated with lawsuits and other legal actions, particularly involving claims for infringement of patents and other intellectual property rights; and the impact and costs of war, in particular as a result of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and the possibility of further escalation resulting in a new geopolitical and regulatory instability. Such factors and others are discussed more fully in the sections entitled “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” of the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, as well as in the sections entitled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” of the Company’s quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended April 2, 2022, July 2, 2022, and October 1, 2022 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), which discussions are incorporated by reference in this release, as updated by the Company’s future filings with the SEC. The forward-looking statements included in this release represent the Company’s estimates or views as of the date of this release and should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s estimates or views as of any date subsequent to the date of this release. Except as required by law, the Company does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

Caspar Tudor, Head of Investor Relations – (508) 482-2429