Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $140.15.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Leerink Partners increased their price target on Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Agilent Technologies to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $159.00 to $140.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st.

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of A opened at $115.90 on Friday. Agilent Technologies has a 12-month low of $96.43 and a 12-month high of $153.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.23. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $108.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.05. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.92% and a net margin of 17.59%. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.22 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is presently 24.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total value of $232,737.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares in the company, valued at $2,657,456.28. This trade represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $211,840.74. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $251,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 458 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $191,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 491 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,479 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,025,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter.

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.

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