Scientech Research LLC Takes $4.09 Million Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Scientech Research LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 31,572 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,093,000. Agilent Technologies makes up about 0.8% of Scientech Research LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of A. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,872 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $479,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 12,621 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,755,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 11,033 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,472,000 after purchasing an additional 1,774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $205,000.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $283,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at $3,497,110. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on A shares. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $135.00 target price (down previously from $152.00) on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $151.00 target price on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.60.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of Agilent Technologies stock opened at $146.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.78. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $138.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.11. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $96.80 and a twelve month high of $155.35. The firm has a market cap of $42.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.48 and a beta of 1.05.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.06. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 21.75% and a return on equity of 25.26%. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a $0.236 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.22%.

Agilent Technologies Profile

Agilent Technologies, Inc provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Life Sciences and Applied Markets, Diagnostics and Genomics, and Agilent CrossLab. The Life Sciences and Applied Markets segment offers liquid chromatography systems and components; liquid chromatography mass spectrometry systems; gas chromatography systems and components; gas chromatography mass spectrometry systems; inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry instruments; atomic absorption instruments; microwave plasma-atomic emission spectrometry instruments; inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry instruments; raman spectroscopy; cell analysis plate based assays; flow cytometer; real-time cell analyzer; cell imaging systems; microplate reader; laboratory software; information management and analytics; laboratory automation and robotic systems; dissolution testing; and vacuum pumps, and measurement technologies.