Vantage Wealth Has $14.72 Million Stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Vantage Wealth boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 109,590 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 2,980 shares during the quarter. Agilent Technologies makes up about 3.2% of Vantage Wealth’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Vantage Wealth’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $14,722,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of A. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 6.6% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,976,905 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $442,011,000 after purchasing an additional 183,716 shares in the last quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $14,848,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 29.8% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,978 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,592,000 after purchasing an additional 7,111 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 6.5% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 59,456 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $8,828,000 after purchasing an additional 3,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 42,587 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,721,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,947,800. This represents 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 this hyperlink.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:A opened at $151.24 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $43.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.22, a PEG ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $138.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $138.06. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $124.16 and a 1 year high of $155.35.

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

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.248 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is a boost from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 22.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on A shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America reduced their price objective 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. StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Barclays dropped their target price on Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.