WAT drawdown: 11.8% below the all-time high
Waters Corporation (WAT) is 11.8% below its all-time high, set Sep 8, 2021 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). The chart shows every day as a percentage of the highest level reached up to that point: 100% means a fresh record, everything below is a drawdown. "All-time" means since our price data begins (1995).
- Below all-time high
- −11.8%
- 88.2% of ATH
- All-time high
- $424.7
- Sep 8, 2021
- Time below the high
- 4.9 yrs
- since Sep 8, 2021
- Worst-ever drawdown
- −80.1%
- Jul 22, 2002
- Longest underwater
- 10.6 yrs
- between all-time highs
- Today's level first reached
- Jul 22, 2021
- 5.0 yrs ago
- Last time this deep
- Nov 11, 2020
- in a previous episode
% of all-time high since 1995#
The classic underwater chart (drawdown curve), drawn as % of the all-time high — 100% is a fresh record, everything below it is time spent underwater.
% of all-time high on the price basis — the all-time high considers the full history of WAT, including years before the visible window. Dividends are excluded on this basis (the convention headlines use).
The deepest drawdowns on record#
Every decline of 15% or more from an all-time high (price basis), deepest first.
| Peak | Trough | Depth | Peak → trough | Recovered by | Underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 28, 2000 | Jul 22, 2002 | −80.1% | 1.8 yrs | Apr 21, 2011 | 10.6 yrs |
| Sep 8, 2021 | Oct 30, 2023 | −44.3% | 2.1 yrs | not yet | 4.9 yrs+ |
| Apr 8, 2019 | Mar 23, 2020 | −35.9% | 11 mo | Jan 5, 2021 | 1.7 yrs |
| Sep 14, 1999 | Dec 15, 1999 | −35.1% | 3 mo | Jan 25, 2000 | 4 mo |
| Oct 3, 1996 | Apr 17, 1997 | −29.7% | 6 mo | Jun 2, 1997 | 8 mo |
| May 19, 2011 | Dec 16, 2011 | −28.1% | 7 mo | Jun 17, 2013 | 2.1 yrs |
| Mar 6, 2000 | Apr 17, 2000 | −27.5% | 42 days | Jun 2, 2000 | 3 mo |
| Oct 3, 1997 | Jan 5, 1998 | −22.1% | 3 mo | Jan 28, 1998 | 4 mo |
Price basis (no dividends) — the convention crash histories use. With dividends reinvested, recoveries arrive years earlier; switch the basis on the chart above to see it.
Drawdown vs what came next#
One dot per month since 1995: how far WAT stood below its all-time high, and the total return over the following 1, 5 and 10 years.
Read this with survivorship bias in mind: WAT is on this chart precisely because it survived — the many stocks that fell this far and never recovered (or were delisted) aren't on anyone's chart, so past recoveries here say little about the odds ahead. Monthly windows also overlap heavily (they are not independent samples). Not investment advice.
FAQ
- How far is WAT from its all-time high?
- WAT is currently 11.8% below its all-time high, set Sep 8, 2021 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). Prices only, the convention headlines use; with dividends reinvested the gap is usually smaller.
- What was the biggest WAT drawdown ever?
- The deepest decline on record in our data (since 1995) took the stock 80.1% below its prior high, bottoming Jul 22, 2002. The table on this page lists every major episode with its peak, trough and recovery date.
Methodology & related#
Daily closing prices since 1995 (split-adjusted). "All-time" means since our price data begins — WAT may have traded earlier. For a 150-year index drawdown record see the S&P 500 drawdown page. The price basis excludes dividends; the total-return basis reinvests them; the real basis additionally deflates by CPI. See also returns by year, 150 years of returns and the rolling-returns explorer. Past performance does not predict future returns; not investment advice.