Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Sets New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $116.36 and last traded at $116.87, with a volume of 358979 shares. The stock had previously closed at $118.97.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on A. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America decreased their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $150.83.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $33.23 billion, a PE ratio of 26.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $134.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.80.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.56% and a net margin of 19.27%. Research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,947,800. This represents a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $232,737.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 21,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in A. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $205,000. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 15.3% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 49,696 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $7,379,000 after purchasing an additional 6,588 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $487,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the third quarter valued at $150,000. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance bought a new position in Agilent Technologies during the third quarter valued at $216,000.

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.