Waters announced the launch of its new Charged Aerosol Detector (CAD) on November 11 2025, a device that plugs directly into the company’s Empower software and its full line of liquid chromatography systems, including the Alliance iS HPLC, Arc HPLC and all ACQUITY UPLC platforms.
The CAD delivers highly sensitive, reproducible measurements for analytes that absorb little or no UV light—such as sugars, lipids, impurities and excipients—without requiring sample pre‑treatment. By integrating the detector with Empower, Waters eliminates the communication errors that have plagued multi‑vendor LC‑CAD setups, streamlining compliance workflows for regulated laboratories.
Strategically, the CAD expands Waters’ ability to serve a broader range of markets—from small‑molecule and biopharmaceutical formulations to food additives and environmental pollutants—within a single compliant workflow. The product positions the company to capture demand from labs seeking robust, UV‑independent detection, potentially opening new revenue streams and reinforcing its competitive moat against rivals that lack a comparable detector.
Waters’ Q3 2025 financial results, released on November 4, underscored the momentum behind the launch. Revenue rose 8 % year‑over‑year to $800 million, driven by strong demand in the pharmaceutical segment and new product adoption, while non‑GAAP earnings per share climbed 16 % to $3.40, beating analyst expectations of $3.21 by $0.19. The earnings beat was largely attributable to disciplined cost management and a favorable product mix that increased the proportion of high‑margin chromatography systems.
In a statement, President & CEO Dr. Udit Batra highlighted the company’s “strong execution and a differentiated product portfolio” as key drivers of the quarter’s performance. He noted that the instrument replacement cycle in the pharma market and the adoption of new bioseparation columns had bolstered sales, reinforcing confidence in the company’s growth trajectory.
Following the earnings release, Waters’ stock advanced 4.46 % in pre‑market trading, a reaction that reflected the market’s appreciation of the revenue and EPS beats as well as the company’s upward revision of full‑year 2025 guidance to 6.7 %–7.3 % constant‑currency revenue growth and $13.05 – $13.15 non‑GAAP EPS.
The CAD launch, coupled with the robust Q3 results, signals that Waters is well positioned to sustain high single‑digit earnings growth. The company’s focus on downstream, regulated workflows and its commitment to end‑to‑end solutions suggest that the new detector will deepen customer loyalty and drive incremental sales of complementary chromatography systems and consumables in the coming years.
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