Raymond James & Associates Trims Stock Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Raymond James & Associates lessened its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 100,398 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 17,990 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $14,907,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $938,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 953.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 32,694 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,757,000 after purchasing an additional 29,590 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 26.2% in the first quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,770 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,168,000 after purchasing an additional 4,523 shares during the last quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter worth about $1,355,000. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,058,000. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of A stock opened at $130.19 on Friday. 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. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $140.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.78, a PEG ratio of 6.96 and a beta of 1.05.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 21.75% and a return on equity of 25.26%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.43 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on A shares. Barclays raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 price target on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $283,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,497,110. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $283,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,497,110. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,801,595. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,995 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,510 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.