Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Sold by Mediolanum International Funds Ltd

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd reduced its stake in Agilent Technologies by 27.7%, holding 64,267 shares worth $7.50 million after selling 24,616 shares.
• Agilent Technologies recently reported earnings of $1.31 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and experienced a 6% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.248 per share, with a yearly dividend yield of 0.83%, reflecting a dividend payout ratio of 24.44%.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd cut its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 27.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,267 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 24,616 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $7,499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 13.5% during 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 acquiring an additional 4,362 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 73,273 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $9,843,000 after acquiring an additional 10,128 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 30,827 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,606,000 after acquiring an additional 2,371 shares during the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 29.5% during the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 13,358 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,563,000 after acquiring an additional 3,040 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 461,485 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $62,619,000 after acquiring an additional 34,933 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Agilent Technologies stock traded down $1.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $118.72. 153,380 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,023,930. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $96.43 and a one year high of $153.84. The stock has a market cap of $33.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $116.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.20.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.63 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 17.59% and a return on equity of 25.92%. Agilent Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st were paid a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.44%.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,508 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.44, for a total value of $177,099.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 37,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,397,893.12. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $139.77.

Agilent Technologies 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.