Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Stock Price

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) had its price target reduced by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $175.00 to $165.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 41.51% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on A. Citigroup boosted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $142.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.71.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 6.5%

A traded down $8.12 during trading on Thursday, reaching $116.60. The company had a trading volume of 1,462,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,074,749. The company has a market cap of $32.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.30. Agilent Technologies has a 12 month low of $96.43 and a 12 month high of $160.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.52. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $135.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.97.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The medical research company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.20% and a net margin of 18.75%.Agilent Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.900-6.040 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.390-1.420 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies will post 5.58 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in A. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $549,158,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,147,601 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,925,064,000 after purchasing an additional 1,713,216 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 424.1% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,041,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $240,956,000 after buying an additional 1,652,244 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 132.2% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,354,111 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $277,807,000 after buying an additional 1,340,161 shares during the period. Finally, Troy Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 74.3% during the 2nd quarter. Troy Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,397,820 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $282,967,000 after buying an additional 1,021,865 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Agilent Technologies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management raised FY‑2026 targets and highlighted margin programs — Agilent outlined a $7.3B–$7.5B FY26 revenue target and is expanding its “Ignite” operating system to drive margin improvement, signaling management confidence in top‑line growth and structural cost leverage. Agilent outlines $7.3B–$7.5B FY26 revenue target while expanding Ignite Operating System for margin growth
• Positive Sentiment: Company issued FY26 EPS guidance that brackets street expectations — Agilent set FY26 EPS at $5.90–$6.04 (consensus ~$5.93) and Q2 EPS at $1.39–$1.42 (broadly in line), providing a clear roadmap for the year and reducing near‑term forecast uncertainty. (Guidance reported in earnings release and slides.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 results were broadly in line with Street estimates — revenue of ~$1.80B (≈+7% YoY) and EPS ~$1.36 were essentially in line with expectations; management said U.S. snowstorms disrupted shipments and weighed on the quarter. That helps explain the miss but leaves execution questions to watch. Agilent reports in-line first quarter, says results hurt by US snowstorm
• Neutral Sentiment: Management commentary and slides available — the earnings call and slide deck walk through segment performance, Ignite initiatives and near‑term cadence; investors should review the transcript/slides for guidance sensitivity and margin assumptions. Agilent Technologies, Inc. (A) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Small EPS/revenue misses and operating cash‑flow weakness pressured sentiment — Q1 EPS missed by $0.01 and revenue was a touch below consensus; some reports flagged a meaningful decline in operating cash flow vs. prior year, which raises short‑term liquidity and cash conversion concerns. Agilent Technologies earnings missed by $0.01, revenue fell short of estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/ownership dynamics add downside risk — large institutional rebalancing and recent insider sales (reported in filings/third‑party summaries) are noted by some data providers and could add selling pressure if execution slips. Agilent Technologies Inc. (A) Releases Q1 2026 Earnings: Revenue Up, EPS and Operating Cash Flow Miss

About Agilent Technologies

Agilent Technologies is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, consumables, software and services for laboratories across the life sciences, diagnostics and applied chemical markets. The company’s product portfolio includes analytical instruments such as liquid and gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers, spectroscopy systems, and laboratory automation solutions, together with reagents, supplies and informatics tools that support measurement, testing and data analysis workflows. Agilent also offers instrument maintenance, qualification and laboratory services designed to help customers improve productivity and comply with regulatory requirements.

Founded as a corporate spin-off from Hewlett‑Packard in 1999, Agilent has evolved through a combination of strategic restructuring and acquisitions to concentrate on life sciences, diagnostics and applied laboratories.