Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $121.45 and last traded at $122.51, with a volume of 516043 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $126.33.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on A. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.15.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 2.1 %

The company has a market cap of $35.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $140.48 and its 200-day moving average is $139.08. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.56% and a net margin of 19.27%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is 22.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at $5,947,800. This trade represents a 4.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of A. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $251,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 458 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Agilent Technologies by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $191,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Agilent Technologies by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 646 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 491 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter.

About Agilent Technologies

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.