Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Purchased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,976,905 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 183,716 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 1.04% of Agilent Technologies worth $442,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.8% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 68.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 234 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 29,300.0% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 5.0 %

Shares of A stock traded up $6.56 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $136.87. 2,077,724 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,348,171. The stock's 50 day moving average is $139.73 and its 200-day moving average is $138.08. The company has a market cap of $39.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.40, a P/E/G ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $102.70 and a fifty-two week high of $155.35.

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

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is 19.50%.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 40,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 40,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,497,110. The trade was 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 11,995 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,510 in the last ninety days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A has been the subject of several analyst reports. 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 for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.