Sterling Capital Management LLC Acquires 5,841 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 51.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,097 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,841 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $2,297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of A. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the third quarter valued at $215,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 8,513 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,264,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,615 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $537,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,466 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $663,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $535,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $138.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.58.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE A traded down $0.32 on Friday, hitting $102.38. 1,769,911 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,857,257. The company has a market capitalization of $29.19 billion, a PE ratio of 23.54, a P/E/G 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. The business's fifty day moving average is $120.34 and its 200 day moving average is $132.80. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $96.43 and a 52 week high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is 22.76%.

Insider Transactions at Agilent Technologies

In other news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $211,840.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 35,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,161,931.02. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,638 shares of company stock worth $731,229.

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.