Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Invests $11.57 Million in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 85,991 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,567,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of A. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the third quarter worth about $215,000. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 66,981 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $9,907,000 after acquiring an additional 1,349 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 104,900 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $15,576,000 after acquiring an additional 25,000 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in Agilent Technologies by 84.5% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 149,128 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $22,143,000 after acquiring an additional 68,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 9.0% during the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 8,513 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,264,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America cut their price target 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. Barclays upgraded Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $211,840.74. Following the sale, the director now owns 35,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,161,931.02. The trade was a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total value of $232,737.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,657,456.28. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,638 shares of company stock worth $731,229.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 6.1 %

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $102.97 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $130.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.20. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $101.80 and a 1-year high of $155.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.19.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. Equities analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

Agilent Technologies Company 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.