Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Free Report) had its target price lowered by Robert W. Baird from $161.00 to $159.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the medical research company's stock.
Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Barclays upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $146.15.
Read Our Latest Report on A
Agilent Technologies Trading Down 1.2 %
Shares of A stock traded down $1.56 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $126.36. The stock had a trading volume of 2,177,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,762,031. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.05 billion, a PE ratio of 29.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.11. Agilent Technologies has a 52-week low of $124.16 and a 52-week high of $155.35. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $140.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.18.
Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.56% and a net margin of 19.27%. Equities analysts expect that Agilent Technologies will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is 22.76%.
Insider Activity
In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,947,800. The trade was a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.
Institutional Trading of Agilent Technologies
A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of A. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 525,214 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,819,897 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,903,498,000 after acquiring an additional 158,175 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,306,805 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,250,276,000 after purchasing an additional 59,781 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,002,671 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $938,291,000 after purchasing an additional 53,992 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 5,213,739 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $700,414,000 after purchasing an additional 47,495 shares in the last quarter.
About Agilent Technologies
(
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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.
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