B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Reduces Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lowered its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 31.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,685 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 5,012 shares during the quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $1,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the third quarter valued at $205,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.4% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 12,672 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.0% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 20,809 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,090,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $215,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 6,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 8,479 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,259,000 after buying an additional 8,340 shares in the last quarter.

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Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:A traded down $0.51 on Monday, hitting $102.49. 1,193,963 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,795,985. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.77 and a 1-year high of $155.35. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $130.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.71.

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

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the firm's 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,947,800. This trade 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 accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the 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 transaction, the director now owns 35,737 shares in the company, valued at $4,161,931.02. This trade represents a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,638 shares of company stock valued at $731,229.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on 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 raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Barclays raised shares of Agilent Technologies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $150.83.

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.