Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the thirteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $150.83.

A has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Agilent Technologies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th.

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Agilent Technologies Price Performance

A stock traded down $2.42 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $116.55. The stock had a trading volume of 1,772,856 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,768,077. Agilent Technologies has a twelve month low of $116.38 and a twelve month high of $155.35. The company's 50-day moving average price is $134.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.79, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.248 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at $5,947,800. This represents a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $232,737.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 21,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CKW Financial Group boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.9% in the 4th quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 187 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 161.1% in the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 640.0% in the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 222 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 192 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 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.