Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, September 22nd, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of 0.21 per share by the medical research company on Wednesday, October 26th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 3rd.
Agilent Technologies has increased its dividend payment by an average of 9.0% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 10 years. Agilent Technologies has a dividend payout ratio of 15.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Agilent Technologies to earn $5.47 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.84 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 15.4%.
Agilent Technologies Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE A traded down $2.09 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $124.39. 1,378,618 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,844,464. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.35, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.06. Agilent Technologies has a one year low of $112.52 and a one year high of $174.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $130.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.02.
Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 16th. The medical research company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.14. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.94% and a return on equity of 28.46%. The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.10 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies will post 5.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, VP Padraig Mcdonnell sold 2,506 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.33, for a total transaction of $336,630.98. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 15,320 shares in the company, valued at $2,057,935.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of A. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,336,607 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $309,203,000 after purchasing an additional 942,651 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 196.4% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,242,600 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $164,433,000 after buying an additional 823,300 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,531,170 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,246,209,000 after buying an additional 261,435 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 2,681.5% during the first quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 179,849 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $23,799,000 after buying an additional 173,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 41.0% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 438,838 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $58,072,000 after acquiring an additional 127,586 shares during the period.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 17th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Wednesday, July 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $139.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $170.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies to $145.00 in a report on Monday, August 22nd. Finally, Cowen lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies to $160.00 in a report on Monday, August 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $151.31.
Agilent Technologies Company Profile
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Agilent Technologies, Inc provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. 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; vacuum pumps, and measurement technologies.
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