Panagora Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

Key Points

• Panagora Asset Management increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 41% in the fourth quarter, ending with 380,494 shares valued at about $51.8 million.
• Agilent’s latest earnings beat expectations, with quarterly EPS of $1.49 versus the $1.41 consensus and revenue of $1.84 billion, up 10% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $160.93, while the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.255 per share.

Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 41.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 380,494 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 110,667 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. owned 0.13% of Agilent Technologies worth $51,774,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of A. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $549,158,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Agilent Technologies by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,147,601 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,925,064,000 after purchasing an additional 1,713,216 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Agilent Technologies by 424.1% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,041,826 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $240,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,652,244 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Agilent Technologies by 132.2% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,354,111 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $277,807,000 after purchasing an additional 1,340,161 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Agilent Technologies by 42.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,857,820 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $388,864,000 after purchasing an additional 845,688 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 30th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $153.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.93.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Agilent Technologies stock opened at $130.52 on Tuesday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $108.35 and a 52-week high of $160.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $120.55 and a 200-day moving average of $127.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.21, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The medical research company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.08. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.55% and a return on equity of 24.33%. The company had revenue of $1.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.000-6.100 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.480-1.500 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.48%.

Agilent Technologies Profile

Agilent Technologies is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, consumables, software and services for laboratories across the life sciences, diagnostics and applied chemical markets. The company's product portfolio includes analytical instruments such as liquid and gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers, spectroscopy systems, and laboratory automation solutions, together with reagents, supplies and informatics tools that support measurement, testing and data analysis workflows. Agilent also offers instrument maintenance, qualification and laboratory services designed to help customers improve productivity and comply with regulatory requirements.

Founded as a corporate spin-off from Hewlett‑Packard in 1999, Agilent has evolved through a combination of strategic restructuring and acquisitions to concentrate on life sciences, diagnostics and applied laboratories.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding A? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.