Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its Agilent Technologies stake by 71.7% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 129,240 shares valued at about $14.7 million.
• Agilent reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $1.49 per share on revenue of $1.83 billion, and revenue rose 10% year over year.
• The stock has attracted mostly bullish analyst sentiment, with an average Moderate Buy rating and a consensus price target of $159.35.

Bank of Nova Scotia increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 71.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 129,240 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 53,965 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $14,731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of A. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,147,601 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,925,064,000 after buying an additional 1,713,216 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,681,792 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,725,611,000 after buying an additional 241,029 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,425,861 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,006,519,000 after buying an additional 25,139 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,041,881 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $686,049,000 after buying an additional 692,202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $549,158,000.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE:A opened at $138.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.62. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $108.35 and a 1-year high of $160.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $129.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.55. The stock has a market cap of $39.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.84, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.25.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The medical research company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.08. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 24.33% and a net margin of 19.55%.The company had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. Agilent Technologies's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.000-6.100 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.480-1.500 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 20.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America upgraded Agilent Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price target for the company from $150.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Thursday, July 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $153.00 price target for the company. Finally, HSBC lowered their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $159.35.

Agilent Technologies Profile

Agilent Technologies is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, consumables, software and services for laboratories across the life sciences, diagnostics and applied chemical markets. The company's product portfolio includes analytical instruments such as liquid and gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers, spectroscopy systems, and laboratory automation solutions, together with reagents, supplies and informatics tools that support measurement, testing and data analysis workflows. Agilent also offers instrument maintenance, qualification and laboratory services designed to help customers improve productivity and comply with regulatory requirements.

Founded as a corporate spin-off from Hewlett‑Packard in 1999, Agilent has evolved through a combination of strategic restructuring and acquisitions to concentrate on life sciences, diagnostics and applied laboratories.

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