S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC Buys 4,805 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 12.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,587 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,805 shares during the quarter. Agilent Technologies comprises about 1.9% of S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $5,721,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of A. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 62.2% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $49,449,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 48.6% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 957,128 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $124,073,000 after acquiring an additional 313,155 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 63.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 586,439 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $87,075,000 after acquiring an additional 227,431 shares in the last quarter. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

NYSE A traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $143.18. 1,463,255 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,421,388. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $136.07 and a 200-day moving average of $136.96. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $124.16 and a one year high of $155.35. The stock has a market cap of $40.89 billion, a PE ratio of 32.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.06.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The medical research company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.43% and a net margin of 19.80%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from Agilent Technologies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 22.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on A shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup raised their price target on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $143.62.

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.