Ascent Group LLC Decreases Position in Keysight Technologies Inc. $KEYS

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC significantly reduced its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 73.4%, selling 7,247 shares and maintaining just 2,621 shares worth $393,000 at the end of the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors increased their stakes in Keysight Technologies, with Vanguard Group Inc. owning 20.97 million shares valued at over $3.14 billion after a 0.5% increase.
• Keysight Technologies reported an EPS of $1.72 for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with a projected guidance of 1.790-1.850 EPS for Q4 2025.

Ascent Group LLC cut its holdings in Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE:KEYS - Free Report) by 73.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,621 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 7,247 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Keysight Technologies were worth $393,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Keysight Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $666,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 797,656 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $119,465,000 after buying an additional 35,352 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 255,995 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $38,340,000 after buying an additional 1,721 shares during the period. Sandler Capital Management boosted its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 349.5% in the 1st quarter. Sandler Capital Management now owns 34,587 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $5,180,000 after buying an additional 26,892 shares during the period. Finally, PharVision Advisers LLC bought a new position in Keysight Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $313,000. 84.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on KEYS. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Keysight Technologies from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Keysight Technologies from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Keysight Technologies from $177.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Keysight Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Keysight Technologies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $187.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Ingrid A. Estrada sold 10,000 shares of Keysight Technologies stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.97, for a total value of $1,589,700.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 108,590 shares in the company, valued at $17,262,552.30. This trade represents a 8.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Neil Dougherty sold 12,215 shares of Keysight Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.60, for a total transaction of $2,010,589.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 115,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,966,528.80. The trade was a 9.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Keysight Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KEYS traded up $1.13 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $171.67. 598,498 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 984,851. Keysight Technologies Inc. has a 52 week low of $121.43 and a 52 week high of $186.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.94, a current ratio of 3.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.50 billion, a PE ratio of 54.67, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.16. The company's 50 day moving average price is $164.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $156.98.

Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 19th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.05. Keysight Technologies had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The company had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Keysight Technologies has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.790-1.85 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.090-7.090 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Keysight Technologies Inc. will post 6.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Keysight Technologies Profile

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.