Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A – Get Rating) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,470,000 shares, a decrease of 9.2% from the September 30th total of 2,720,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,430,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days. Currently, 0.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Wednesday, October 12th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 17th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 17th. Credit Suisse Group began coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Wednesday, August 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, August 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.31.
Agilent Technologies Stock Performance
Shares of A stock traded up $2.28 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $138.77. The company had a trading volume of 901,955 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,321,311. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $129.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $125.90. Agilent Technologies has a one year low of $112.52 and a one year high of $165.68. The firm has a market cap of $41.08 billion, a PE ratio of 31.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.94.
Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 16th. The medical research company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $1.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.94% and a return on equity of 28.46%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Agilent Technologies will post 5.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 4th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 3rd. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.13%.
Insider Transactions at Agilent Technologies
In other news, VP Padraig Mcdonnell sold 2,506 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.33, for a total value of $336,630.98. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 15,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,057,935.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Michael R. Mcmullen sold 6,775 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.43, for a total transaction of $910,763.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 191,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,724,255.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Padraig Mcdonnell sold 2,506 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.33, for a total transaction of $336,630.98. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 15,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,057,935.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,159 shares of company stock valued at $2,387,327 in the last quarter.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Agilent Technologies
Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 0.8% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 175,276 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $21,305,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares in the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.1% in the third quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 3,139 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $382,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $134,000. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.1% in the third quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 121,550 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $14,774,000 after buying an additional 1,365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 23.5% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 50,254 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,108,000 after buying an additional 9,562 shares in the last quarter.
Agilent Technologies Company Profile
Agilent Technologies, Inc provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. 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; vacuum pumps, and measurement technologies.