Iron Triangle Partners LP Invests $80.11 Million in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Iron Triangle Partners LP purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 596,326 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $80,110,000. Agilent Technologies makes up approximately 8.8% of Iron Triangle Partners LP's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Iron Triangle Partners LP owned 0.21% of Agilent Technologies at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $456,963,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $94,051,000. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 280.3% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 806,895 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $108,398,000 after acquiring an additional 594,744 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,192,790 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $563,259,000 after acquiring an additional 457,713 shares during the period. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $49,066,000.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $211,840.74. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,737 shares in the company, valued at $4,161,931.02. The trade was a 4.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $232,737.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares in the company, valued at $2,657,456.28. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:A traded down $2.76 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $112.66. 411,279 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,891,614. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $96.43 and a 52 week high of $155.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.20. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $111.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $128.57. The company has a market cap of $32.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.27.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.04. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were paid a $0.248 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $138.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $143.00.

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.