Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Director Daniel K. Podolsky Sells 1,819 Shares

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $211,840.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 35,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,161,931.02. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 6.1 %

Shares of A stock traded down $6.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $102.97. The stock had a trading volume of 3,826,290 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,798,069. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 1.66. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.85 and a 12-month high of $155.35. The firm's 50-day moving average is $130.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.73.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. On average, analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is 22.76%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in A. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $456,963,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $94,051,000. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 345.9% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 769,897 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $103,428,000 after purchasing an additional 597,249 shares during the period. Iron Triangle Partners LP purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $80,110,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 280.3% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 806,895 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $108,398,000 after purchasing an additional 594,744 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on A shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Barclays upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $135.00 to $145.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.83.

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.