Assetmark Inc. Buys 38,808 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 60.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 102,561 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 38,808 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $15,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter worth about $938,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 21,365 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,104,000 after buying an additional 2,837 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 10,790 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,570,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 19.1% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 205,854 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $29,955,000 after buying an additional 32,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 102.6% in the 1st quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 3,567 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $519,000 after purchasing an additional 1,806 shares during the period. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,497,110. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at $5,801,595. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at $3,497,110. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,995 shares of company stock worth $1,739,510. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of A traded down $2.82 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $133.86. 4,982,119 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,703,551. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $106.96 and a 52 week high of $155.35. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $139.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $138.21. The firm has a market cap of $38.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.06 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 21.75% and a return on equity of 25.26%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a dividend of $0.236 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 19.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on A shares. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $151.00 target price on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.36.

Agilent Technologies 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.