Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Acquires 223,864 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 38.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 803,080 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 223,864 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned 0.28% of Agilent Technologies worth $107,886,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,466 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $663,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $535,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 8.2% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 14,752 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,187,000 after buying an additional 1,113 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 102.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,164 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 102.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,983 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $535,000 after acquiring an additional 2,016 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 2.1 %

A opened at $108.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock's fifty day moving average is $113.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $129.77. The company has a market capitalization of $30.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.98, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.27. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $96.43 and a 52 week high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is 22.76%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $211,840.74. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,161,931.02. This represents a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $232,737.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares in the company, valued at $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Agilent Technologies from $138.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Seven 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, Agilent Technologies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $143.00.

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.

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