Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) Shares Purchased by XTX Topco Ltd

Key Points

• XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 124.8% in the first quarter, acquiring 9,460 additional shares, bringing its total to 17,042 shares worth approximately $1,994,000.
• Agilent Technologies reported earnings of $1.31 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst estimates and achieving a 6.0% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Most analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Agilent Technologies with an average target price of $139.77.

XTX Topco Ltd raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 124.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,042 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 9,460 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd's holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $1,994,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of A. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. 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 worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 87.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on A shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $159.00 to $140.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. 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, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $139.77.

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:A traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $114.52. 653,505 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,021,158. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $117.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $120.47. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $96.43 and a 1 year high of $153.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.22.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.63 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.92% and a net margin of 17.59%. Agilent Technologies's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st were issued a $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 1st. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,508 shares of the business'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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 37,448 shares in the company, valued at $4,397,893.12. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

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.