Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Sold by First Horizon Advisors Inc.

First Horizon Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 31.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,028 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 6,400 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $1,641,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of A. Sienna Gestion lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 29.8% during the 4th quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 78,445 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $10,537,000 after acquiring an additional 17,991 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $4,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,664 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 13.5% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,674 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $4,279,000 after purchasing an additional 4,362 shares during the period. Prudential PLC lifted its stake 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 worth $9,843,000 after purchasing an additional 10,128 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $5,892,000 after purchasing an additional 3,915 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on A. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 28th. Leerink Partners increased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.92.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:A traded down $2.17 on Monday, hitting $119.21. 1,459,663 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,844,970. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $96.43 and a 12 month high of $153.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 1.23. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $114.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

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 the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.248 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is 24.44%.

Insider Activity

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,508 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.44, for a total transaction of $177,099.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 37,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,397,893.12. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

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.