NFJ Investment Group LLC Has $15.50 Million Stock Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

Key Points

• NJF Investment Group LLC reduced its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 7.9%, selling 11,295 shares and ending the quarter with 132,478 shares valued at approximately $15.5 million.
• Agilent Technologies reported $1.37 EPS for the last quarter, meeting expectations, with revenue reaching $1.74 billion, surpassing analyst estimates.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Agilent, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $139.25, despite recent ups and downs in target prices from various brokerages.

NFJ Investment Group LLC trimmed its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 7.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 132,478 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 11,295 shares during the quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $15,497,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 640.0% in the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 222 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 286.2% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the first quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on A. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Agilent Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Leerink Partners raised their price target on Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $139.25.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

A stock traded down $1.65 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $124.60. 473,023 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,950,295. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $96.43 and a 12 month high of $153.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $119.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.07.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 27th. The medical research company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.37. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 17.97% and a return on equity of 25.51%. The business's revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.32 EPS. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.560-5.590 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 1.570-1.600 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,508 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.44, for a total transaction of $177,099.52. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 37,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,397,893.12. This trade represents a 3.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

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.