Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Receives $143.62 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the fourteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $143.62.

A has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of A stock opened at $145.21 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $141.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $139.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.09. The stock has a market cap of $41.43 billion, a PE ratio of 32.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 1.07. Agilent Technologies has a 1 year low of $124.16 and a 1 year high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The medical research company reported $1.46 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.80% and a return on equity of 25.43%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.38 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.248 dividend. This is an increase from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 value of $286,650.00. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in A. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,898 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,664 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 71,413 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $9,594,000 after purchasing an additional 4,432 shares during the period. Natural Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $416,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 57.9% in the 4th quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 2,296 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $308,000 after buying an additional 842 shares during the period. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 47.8% in the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 1,995 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 645 shares in the last quarter. 87.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.