Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Lowered to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $138.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Leerink Partners upped 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. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $140.15.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 2.5%

A stock traded down $2.93 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $116.10. The stock had a trading volume of 1,577,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,911,605. The firm has a market cap of $32.98 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 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. Agilent Technologies has a 12-month low of $96.43 and a 12-month high of $153.84. The company's 50-day moving average price is $109.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.09.

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

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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 286.2% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in Agilent Technologies by 640.0% during the 4th 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 period. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000.

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.