Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $142.93.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Wolfe Research cut shares of Agilent Technologies from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group lifted 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. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $1,448,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $274,120.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 26,076 shares in the company, valued at $3,650,640. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,953 shares of company stock worth $2,013,630 in the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.8% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 527.8% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE:A opened at $148.48 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $43.32 billion, a PE ratio of 35.10, a P/E/G ratio of 6.48 and a beta of 1.05. Agilent Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $96.80 and a fifty-two week high of $155.35. The company has a fifty day moving average of $139.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.01.

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

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

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

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.