ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Makes New $7.45 Million Investment in Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE:KEYS)

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. has acquired 49,773 shares of Keysight Technologies Inc., valued at approximately $7.45 million, during the first quarter of the year.
• Research analysts have increased their target prices for Keysight Technologies, with JPMorgan Chase raising their target from $177.00 to $200.00 and Bank of America from $170.00 to $175.00.
• In the last quarter, insiders sold a total of 31,830 shares of Keysight Technologies, with CEO Satish Dhanasekaran selling 658 shares valued at approximately $103,819.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new position in shares of Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE:KEYS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 49,773 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $7,454,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Keysight Technologies by 39.9% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Keysight Technologies by 9.1% during the first quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 910 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $146,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Haven Private LLC boosted its stake in Keysight Technologies by 2.1% during the first quarter. Haven Private LLC now owns 3,974 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $595,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its stake in Keysight Technologies by 14.2% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 669 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its stake in Keysight Technologies by 4.8% during the first quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,847 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 84.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Ingrid A. Estrada sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.97, for a total transaction of $1,589,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 108,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,262,552.30. This trade represents a 8.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP John Page sold 7,368 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.78, for a total transaction of $1,162,523.04. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 36,986 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,835,651.08. This trade represents a 16.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,830 shares of company stock valued at $5,124,049 over the last 90 days. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Keysight Technologies Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of Keysight Technologies stock traded down $1.72 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $163.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 145,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 969,071. Keysight Technologies Inc. has a one year low of $121.43 and a one year high of $186.20. The company has a market capitalization of $28.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.11. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $162.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $158.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 2.75 and a current ratio of 3.39.

Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. Keysight Technologies had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Keysight Technologies Inc. will post 6.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KEYS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Keysight Technologies from $156.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Keysight Technologies from $177.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Keysight Technologies from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $170.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Monday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $187.50.

About Keysight Technologies

Keysight Technologies, Inc provides electronic design and test solutions to commercial communications, networking, aerospace, defense and government, automotive, energy, semiconductor, electronic, and education industries in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Communications Solutions Group and Electronic Industrial Solutions Group.