Handelsbanken Fonder AB Boosts Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 34.4% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 162,195 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,536 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $21,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of A. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Agilent Technologies by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 599,581 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $82,712,000 after purchasing an additional 24,687 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 53,422 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $7,269,000 after buying an additional 9,236 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 39.6% during the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 33,918 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,615,000 after buying an additional 9,615 shares during the period. Capricorn Fund Managers Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,161,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 234,275 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,878,000 after buying an additional 12,984 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $150.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $153.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.24.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of A opened at $148.28 on Thursday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $108.35 and a 52-week high of $160.27. The stock has a market cap of $41.88 billion, a PE ratio of 29.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $134.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The medical research company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.55% and a return on equity of 24.33%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.000-6.100 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.480-1.500 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.48%.

Agilent Technologies Company Profile

Agilent Technologies is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, consumables, software and services for laboratories across the life sciences, diagnostics and applied chemical markets. The company’s product portfolio includes analytical instruments such as liquid and gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers, spectroscopy systems, and laboratory automation solutions, together with reagents, supplies and informatics tools that support measurement, testing and data analysis workflows. Agilent also offers instrument maintenance, qualification and laboratory services designed to help customers improve productivity and comply with regulatory requirements.

Founded as a corporate spin-off from Hewlett‑Packard in 1999, Agilent has evolved through a combination of strategic restructuring and acquisitions to concentrate on life sciences, diagnostics and applied laboratories.