Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Purchased by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,862 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,915 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $5,892,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vestal Point Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the third quarter worth about $14,848,000. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 42,587 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,721,000 after buying an additional 4,805 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,898 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,554,000 after buying an additional 2,664 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $362,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 225,646 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,313,000 after buying an additional 41,163 shares during the period.

Insider Activity

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

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE A opened at $120.72 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $136.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.30. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $117.17 and a 52 week high of $155.35. 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 stock has a market cap of $34.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.75, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.11.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its quarterly 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. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on A. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays raised shares of Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $146.15.

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.