SG Americas Securities LLC cut its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A – Free Report) by 12.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,211 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 5,368 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $5,674,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter worth $938,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 953.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 32,694 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,757,000 after buying an additional 29,590 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 26.2% during the 1st quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,770 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,168,000 after buying an additional 4,523 shares in the last quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,355,000. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $823,000. 87.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research firms recently weighed in on A. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 price target for the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.64.
Agilent Technologies Trading Up 0.3 %
A stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $144.97. The company had a trading volume of 1,001,140 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,711,910. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $140.12 and a 200 day moving average of $139.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $96.80 and a 12 month high of $155.35. The company has a market capitalization of $42.30 billion, a PE ratio of 34.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.48 and a beta of 1.05.
Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.06. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.26% and a net margin of 21.75%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. Agilent Technologies’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.236 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.
Insider Activity
In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,497,110. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,497,110. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at $5,801,595. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 13,953 shares of company stock worth $2,013,630. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
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.