Swiss National Bank Sells 54,300 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Swiss National Bank cut its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 811,700 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 54,300 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned 0.28% of Agilent Technologies worth $109,044,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CKW Financial Group increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 114.9% in the fourth quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 187 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 161.1% during the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 66.5% in the 4th quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 263 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised Agilent Technologies from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $135.00 to $145.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup raised their price target on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $146.15.

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Insider Transactions at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares of the company's stock, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $232,737.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Agilent Technologies stock traded down $0.83 on Wednesday, reaching $122.27. 1,405,863 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,678,213. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $117.17 and a fifty-two week high of $155.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $137.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $137.68.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.04. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. On average, analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.248 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.76%.

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.