Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Raised to Equal Weight at Barclays

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Barclays from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $145.00 price target on the medical research company's stock, up from their prior price target of $135.00. Barclays's target price points to a potential upside of 6.22% from the company's previous close.

A has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Citigroup increased their target price on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $144.38.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Agilent Technologies stock traded down $1.58 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $136.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,395,435 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,675,708. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $141.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Agilent Technologies has a 1 year low of $124.16 and a 1 year high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The medical research company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.05. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.43% and a net margin of 19.80%. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.38 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 owns 39,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,947,800. This trade represents a 4.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Institutional Trading of Agilent Technologies

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $456,963,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $94,051,000. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 280.3% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 806,895 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $108,398,000 after purchasing an additional 594,744 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,589,874 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,314,784,000 after acquiring an additional 525,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 62.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,287,665 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $191,193,000 after acquiring an additional 493,947 shares during the last quarter.

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.