Natixis Advisors LLC Purchases 15,435 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 113,991 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,435 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $16,926,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 18.9% in the first quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 440 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.6% during the second quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 4,845 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. McAdam LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.1% during the third quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 2,531 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.2% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,570 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rovin Capital UT ADV lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.6% during the third quarter. Rovin Capital UT ADV now owns 5,049 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $750,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,497,110. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. The trade was a 19.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,995 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,510.

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE:A traded up $1.35 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $127.04. 727,495 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,702,240. The company has a fifty day moving average of $138.26 and a 200 day moving average of $137.83. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $121.23 and a 12 month high of $155.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.08, a PEG ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 1.07.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 21.75% and a return on equity of 25.26%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.43 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on A. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $157.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $151.00 price target on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target 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 equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.36.

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.