Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Buys 18,500 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 9.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 218,494 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 18,500 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned approximately 0.08% of Agilent Technologies worth $29,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CKW Financial Group increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 114.9% in the fourth quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 187 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 161.1% in the 4th 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 during the period. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 66.5% in the 4th quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 263 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. 87.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on A shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target 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. Barclays dropped their target price 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. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $143.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was 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 owns 35,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,161,931.02. This represents a 4.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total value of $232,737.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of A traded up $0.59 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $107.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,201,767 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,871,450. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $96.43 and a 1 year high of $155.35. The business has a fifty day moving average of $115.80 and a 200 day moving average of $130.66. The company has a market cap of $30.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.19.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.76%.

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.