OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd Buys 21,584 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Key Points

• OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 8.1% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 287,538 shares worth about $33.62 million.
• Agilent Technologies' recent performance shows a 6% revenue increase year-over-year, with a quarterly EPS of $1.31, surpassing analysts' expectations.
• Wall Street analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Agilent Technologies, with a target price averaging $139.77.

OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 8.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 287,538 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 21,584 shares during the quarter. Agilent Technologies makes up about 0.9% of OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd owned approximately 0.10% of Agilent Technologies worth $33,624,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,479 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,025,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,449 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 873 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,406 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $281,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,784 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $560,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,508 shares of Agilent Technologies 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Leerink Partners lifted 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. 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $139.77.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of Agilent Technologies stock traded down $1.57 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $113.32. 718,387 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,011,502. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $117.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.20. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $96.43 and a twelve month high of $153.84. The company has a market cap of $32.19 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.22.

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

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st were issued a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.44%.

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.