Advisory Alpha LLC Raises Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Advisory Alpha LLC increased its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 3.4% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,980 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $434,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies in the third quarter valued at about $707,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 3.1% in the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 24,426 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,731,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 25.9% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 8,296 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 1,707 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 146.5% in the third quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 58,563 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,549,000 after purchasing an additional 34,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth about $259,000.

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE A traded up $1.69 on Friday, hitting $132.51. 197,941 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,776,305. The company has a market capitalization of $38.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.93, a P/E/G ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.64. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.80 and a 52-week high of $155.35. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $137.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.78.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The medical research company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 26.25% and a net margin of 18.84%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. Agilent Technologies’s revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.236 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 2nd. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 22.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In related news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.28, for a total value of $1,999,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 49,486 shares in the company, valued at $6,595,494.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $254,540.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 25,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,274,050. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.28, for a total value of $1,999,200.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 49,486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,595,494.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on A shares. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $67.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $126.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.06.

Agilent Technologies Company 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.