Jennison Associates LLC Boosts Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 17.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 439,112 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 65,731 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Agilent Technologies worth $51,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in A. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 640.0% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 222 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 286.2% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $34,000.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $4,397,893.12. This trade represents a 3.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of A traded up $3.54 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $115.58. The stock had a trading volume of 707,528 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,858,433. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $96.43 and a 1-year high of $153.84. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $116.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.00. The company has a market cap of $32.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.46, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.23. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.05. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 17.59% and a return on equity of 25.92%. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.63 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. Agilent Technologies's revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Agilent Technologies's payout ratio is presently 24.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $139.77.

Agilent Technologies Company Profile

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.