Sandler Capital Management reduced its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A – Free Report) by 78.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,063 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 85,137 shares during the quarter. Sandler Capital Management’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $3,329,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. BlueSpruce Investments LP boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 24.5% during the 1st quarter. BlueSpruce Investments LP now owns 3,143,767 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $434,909,000 after acquiring an additional 619,118 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,479,000. Suvretta Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at about $690,000. TCW Group Inc. lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 90.4% in the 1st quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 77,051 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $10,659,000 after buying an additional 36,591 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 176.1% in the 1st quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 302,015 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $41,781,000 after buying an additional 192,621 shares in the last quarter. 85.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Activity
In related news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.78, for a total transaction of $415,730.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 24,219 shares in the company, valued at $2,876,732.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Michael R. Mcmullen sold 944 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $122,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 260,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,912,970. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.78, for a total transaction of $415,730.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 24,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,876,732.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.
Agilent Technologies Stock Performance
NYSE A traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $113.46. 768,290 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,736,948. The company has a market cap of $33.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.03. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $113.28 and a 12-month high of $160.26. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $122.08 and a 200 day moving average of $127.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.
Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 15th. The medical research company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.07. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 16.20% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of analysts have commented on A shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 24th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Credit Suisse Group cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $135.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.12.
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.