Vanguard Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,167,661 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 281,149 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.63% of Agilent Technologies worth $4,455,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in A. Prospera Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the third quarter valued at approximately $375,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,372 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,392,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at $205,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $324,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 15.3% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 49,696 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,379,000 after purchasing an additional 6,588 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Trading Up 1.0 %

Agilent Technologies stock opened at $121.96 on Tuesday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $117.17 and a 12-month high of $155.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $136.34 and a 200 day moving average of $137.16. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is 22.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Agilent Technologies news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total value of $232,737.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,947,800. This trade represents a 4.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.15.

Agilent Technologies Company 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.