Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Sold by Stephens Inc. AR

Stephens Inc. AR cut its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,975 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 106 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $590,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of A. Norden Group LLC purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at about $342,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 41,357 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,018,000 after buying an additional 1,823 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 29,300.0% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,273 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,058,000 after buying an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 60,579 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $8,815,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. 87.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $137.78 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $139.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $39.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.59, a PEG ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 1.07. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $104.09 and a 12-month high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released 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. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.26% and a net margin of 21.75%. Agilent Technologies’s revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.43 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on A. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $151.00 target price on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,801,595. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of Agilent Technologies 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,497,110. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,995 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,510 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Agilent Technologies

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.