Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Decreases Stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise cut its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 97.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 345 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 13,630 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $51,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in A. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 114.8% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 68.3% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 234 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. The trade was a 19.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $157.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen increased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.36.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $133.84 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $38.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.77, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 1.07. The business's 50 day moving average is $137.90 and its 200 day moving average is $137.65. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.48 and a 12-month high of $155.35. 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, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This is an increase from Agilent Technologies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is presently 20.54%.

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.