Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Stock Price

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by equities researchers at Barclays from $115.00 to $125.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the medical research company's stock. Barclays's price target would suggest a potential upside of 5.02% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on A. Leerink Partners boosted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $140.92.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

A traded down $0.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $119.03. 694,807 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,065,288. Agilent Technologies has a 1-year low of $96.43 and a 1-year high of $153.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.81 billion, a PE ratio of 29.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The business's 50-day moving average price is $111.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.08.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $211,840.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 35,737 shares in the company, valued at $4,161,931.02. This trade represents a 4.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Institutional Trading of Agilent Technologies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 640.0% during the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 222 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 286.2% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000.

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.