Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT Sells 125 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT reduced its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,322 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the period. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CKW Financial Group boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.9% in the fourth quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 187 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 161.1% in the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $31,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 68.3% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 234 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 66.5% in the fourth quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 263 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $135.33 on Monday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $124.16 and a 1 year high of $155.35. The company has a market cap of $38.61 billion, a PE ratio of 30.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $140.97 and its 200 day moving average is $139.34.

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

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.248 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America dropped 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, Barclays raised Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.38.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of Agilent Technologies 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,947,800. The trade was a 4.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

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.