Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $130.31, but opened at $139.13. Agilent Technologies shares last traded at $137.55, with a volume of 420,905 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on A. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 price target for the company. Citigroup increased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen raised their price target on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.36.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

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 company has a market capitalization of $39.33 billion, a PE ratio of 28.40, a PEG ratio of 6.31 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $139.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.05.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $3,497,110. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,995 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,510 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 18.9% during the 1st quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 440 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.7% in the first quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 4,423 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. McAdam LLC grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 2,531 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $376,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.2% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,570 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.42% of the company’s stock.

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.