Dudley & Shanley Inc. Makes New $8.30 Million Investment in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Dudley & Shanley Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 55,900 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,300,000. Agilent Technologies accounts for approximately 1.3% of Dudley & Shanley Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its position in Agilent Technologies by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 4,837 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $627,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. lifted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 4.4% in the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 2,613 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 84,181 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $10,912,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 13,298 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,724,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $1,448,550.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This represents a 19.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE A traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $134.60. 1,189,197 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,734,761. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.45, a PEG ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $135.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.58. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.16 and a 1-year high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The medical research company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.80% and a return on equity of 25.43%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This is a positive change from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is 22.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 target price on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. Barclays dropped their price target on Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.62.

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.