First Foundation Advisors Sells 30,051 Shares of Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE:KEYS)

Key Points

• First Foundation Advisors significantly decreased its holdings in Keysight Technologies, selling 30,051 shares and reducing its stake by 94.8%, leaving it with only 1,643 shares valued at $246,000.
• CFO Neil Dougherty and CEO Satish Dhanasekaran both sold shares recently, with the CFO selling 12,215 shares for approximately $2 million, reflecting a 9.58% decrease in his ownership.
• Analysts have increased their price targets for Keysight Technologies, with Morgan Stanley raising theirs from $156 to $180, supporting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for the stock.

First Foundation Advisors lessened its stake in Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE:KEYS - Free Report) by 94.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,643 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 30,051 shares during the quarter. First Foundation Advisors' holdings in Keysight Technologies were worth $246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its position in Keysight Technologies by 97.8% in the first quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 182 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Keysight Technologies by 39.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 263 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 241.8% in the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 270 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Goodman Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Keysight Technologies in the 1st quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its stake in Keysight Technologies by 188.1% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 435 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.58% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Keysight Technologies

In other news, CFO Neil Dougherty sold 12,215 shares of Keysight Technologies stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 115,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,966,528.80. This trade represents a 9.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Satish Dhanasekaran sold 658 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.78, for a total value of $103,819.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 115,576 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,235,581.28. The trade was a 0.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,830 shares of company stock valued at $5,124,049 in the last ninety days. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KEYS has been the subject of a number of research 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 report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised shares of Keysight Technologies from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $170.00 to $175.00 in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Keysight Technologies from $177.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $187.50.

Keysight Technologies Price Performance

KEYS stock opened at $167.56 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $162.30 and a 200-day moving average of $158.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.09. Keysight Technologies Inc. has a 12 month low of $119.72 and a 12 month high of $186.20. The company has a current ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.28 billion. Keysight Technologies had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.