Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Takes Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 35,812 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $4,189,000. Agilent Technologies comprises 1.0% of Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sienna Gestion grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 78,445 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $10,537,000 after purchasing an additional 17,991 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,898 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $4,554,000 after buying an additional 2,664 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 16.0% in the 4th quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 73,273 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $9,843,000 after buying an additional 10,128 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 43,862 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $5,892,000 after buying an additional 3,915 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in Agilent Technologies by 16.0% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 49,288 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $6,621,000 after acquiring an additional 6,802 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Agilent Technologies news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $211,840.74. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 35,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,161,931.02. The trade was a 4.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of A stock traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $119.20. 1,734,703 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,882,502. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $112.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.92. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $96.43 and a 1-year high of $153.84. The company has a market cap of $33.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.23. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results 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 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%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on A shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Leerink Partners lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Wall Street Zen cut Agilent Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $140.92.

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.