Fred Alger Management LLC Buys 8,693 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Fred Alger Management LLC grew its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 188.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,317 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 8,693 shares during the quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $1,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.0% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 20,809 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,090,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the period. Vestal Point Capital LP acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $14,848,000. Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 34.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 13,453 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,992,000 after buying an additional 3,440 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.4% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 12,672 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 4.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,948,536 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $437,799,000 after acquiring an additional 136,184 shares during the last quarter. 87.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $137.97 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $39.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.21, a P/E/G ratio of 4.37 and a beta of 1.07. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $124.16 and a 12 month high of $155.35. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $137.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.15.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.248 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. This is a positive change from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on A shares. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of Agilent Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Monday, August 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This trade represents a 19.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.