Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Purchased by Troy Asset Management Ltd

Troy Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 1.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 974,184 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,852 shares during the period. Agilent Technologies accounts for 4.7% of Troy Asset Management Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Troy Asset Management Ltd owned approximately 0.34% of Agilent Technologies worth $144,647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 18.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,884,345 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $4,348,471,000 after acquiring an additional 4,605,228 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,542,054 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,242,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042,926 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 5.7% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,064,660 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,952,832,000 after buying an additional 809,149 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the first quarter valued at about $61,218,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 48.6% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 957,128 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $124,073,000 after buying an additional 313,155 shares during the period. 87.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on A shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Citigroup raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.36.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

NYSE A traded down $2.95 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $136.68. 1,918,633 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,560,934. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $139.46 and a 200-day moving average of $138.20. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $104.09 and a one year high of $155.35. The stock has a market cap of $39.27 billion, a PE ratio of 28.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.06 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share (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 period in the previous year, the business posted $1.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,801,595. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $1,448,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at $5,801,595. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at $3,497,110. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,995 shares of company stock worth $1,739,510 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Agilent Technologies Company 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.