Net Worth Advisory Group Makes New Investment in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 4,129 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $613,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 14.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $150,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 14.7% in the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 11,985 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,744,000 after purchasing an additional 1,532 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the first quarter valued at $261,000. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.2% during the first quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 25,494 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,709,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 4.4% in the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 2,259 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Wolfe Research cut Agilent Technologies from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. UBS Group boosted their price target 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. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $157.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $274,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 26,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,650,640. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $274,120.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 26,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,650,640. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was 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 owns 40,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,953 shares of company stock worth $2,013,630 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:A traded up $1.41 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $138.83. 1,185,274 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,689,532. The company has a market capitalization of $40.51 billion, a PE ratio of 32.82, a P/E/G ratio of 6.96 and a beta of 1.05. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.80 and a 52-week 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 business's fifty day simple moving average is $141.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $138.73.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.236 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

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.