Impax Asset Management Group plc Lowers Stock Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A - Free Report) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,364,236 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 52,639 shares during the period. Agilent Technologies comprises approximately 1.3% of Impax Asset Management Group plc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned approximately 0.81% of Agilent Technologies worth $328,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of A. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 2.3% in the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 6,751 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $895,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 28,606 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,785,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 52.1% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $309,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,531,170 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,246,209,000 after acquiring an additional 261,435 shares during the period. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 2,880 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Philip Binns sold 2,827 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.54, for a total transaction of $417,095.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,474,957.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Philip Binns sold 2,827 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.54, for a total transaction of $417,095.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,474,957.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael R. Mcmullen sold 52,297 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $7,844,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 253,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at $38,086,350. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 61,610 shares of company stock worth $9,220,333 in the last three months.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of A stock traded up $2.94 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $147.40. 873,678 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,608,772. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $140.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $128.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.80 and a 52-week high of $151.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.10, a P/E/G ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.11.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The medical research company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.07. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 27.09%. The business had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.37 EPS. Agilent Technologies's revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.236 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 1st. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. Agilent Technologies's dividend payout ratio is 22.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America downgraded Agilent Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $133.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.71.

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.