Waters Corporation (WAT)

Operating profit margin

		Dec 31, 2023	Sep 30, 2023	Jun 30, 2023	Mar 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2022	Sep 30, 2022	Jun 30, 2022	Mar 31, 2022	Dec 31, 2021	Sep 30, 2021	Jun 30, 2021	Mar 31, 2021	Dec 31, 2020	Sep 30, 2020	Jun 30, 2020	Mar 31, 2020	Dec 31, 2019	Sep 30, 2019	Jun 30, 2019	Mar 31, 2019
Operating income (ttm)	US$ in thousands	817,676	839,736	852,320	852,093	873,395	849,312	849,117	845,907	821,707	823,218	789,787	748,479	645,489	618,195	633,046	655,586	708,457	716,572	715,011	716,550
Revenue (ttm)	US$ in thousands	2,857,555	2,913,395	2,928,280	2,913,876	2,923,159	2,904,113	2,856,130	2,822,850	2,740,936	2,690,971	2,625,688	2,463,034	2,316,295	2,242,766	2,225,719	2,306,467	2,357,906	2,359,178	2,359,942	2,356,755
Operating profit margin		28.61%	28.82%	29.11%	29.24%	29.88%	29.25%	29.73%	29.97%	29.98%	30.59%	30.08%	30.39%	27.87%	27.56%	28.44%	28.42%	30.05%	30.37%	30.30%	30.40%

December 31, 2023 calculation

Operating profit margin = Operating income (ttm) ÷ Revenue (ttm)
= $817,676K ÷ $2,857,555K
= 28.61%

Based on the provided data for Waters Corp.'s operating profit margin over the past eight quarters, there is a clear trend of decreasing operating profit margins over time. The operating profit margin has declined from 30.02% in Q1 2022 to 27.66% in Q4 2023.

This downward trend indicates a potential decrease in the efficiency and profitability of the company's operations over the specified period. It suggests that the company may be facing challenges in controlling its operating expenses or generating sufficient revenue to maintain previous levels of profitability.

Further analysis would be required to determine the specific factors influencing this trend and to assess the overall financial health and performance of Waters Corp. based on other relevant financial metrics and contextual information.