Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT Cuts Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT lowered its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 8.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,922 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 275 shares during the period. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of A. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 18.9% in the 1st quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 440 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 2.5% during the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.7% during the first quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 4,423 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $644,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 4,845 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 2,259 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.42% of the company’s stock.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of A opened at $141.95 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $137.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.27. The company has a market capitalization of $41.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.56, a P/E/G ratio of 6.43 and a beta of 1.05. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $96.80 and a fifty-two week high of $155.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.78.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.26% and a net margin of 21.75%. Agilent Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.43 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.236 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at $3,497,110. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their target price on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 target price on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $147.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.60.

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.