QRG Capital Management Inc. Purchases 13,493 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AFree Report) by 22.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 73,070 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,493 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $9,816,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,976,905 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $442,011,000 after acquiring an additional 183,716 shares during the last quarter. Vestal Point Capital LP bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $14,848,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 29.8% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,978 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,592,000 after purchasing an additional 7,111 shares during the last quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 42,587 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,721,000 after purchasing an additional 4,805 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 10.8% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 702,631 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $104,327,000 after purchasing an additional 68,670 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $286,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,947,800. The trade was a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE A opened at $127.07 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $140.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.20. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.16 and a 1-year high of $155.35. The firm has a market cap of $36.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.07.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:AGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.04. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.58% and a net margin of 19.27%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on A shares. Barclays upgraded Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of 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 on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.15.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Agilent Technologies

About Agilent Technologies

(Free Report)

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.

See Also

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A)

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