Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday. The company traded as high as $178.21 and last traded at $177.9290, with a volume of 2,135,427 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 17th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $135.00 target price on the stock. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with 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 $173.65.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average is $160.50 and its 200 day moving average is $138.97. The firm has a market cap of $50.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.55, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The medical research company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.13. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.53% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.37 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Agilent Technologies has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.710-1.740 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.180-6.210 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6.20 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.2550 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.08%.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other news, Director Mikael Dolsten sold 634 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.38, for a total value of $95,974.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at $745,395.12. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Institutional Trading of Agilent Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of A. Lmcg Investments LLC grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 6.2% in the third quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 105,340 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $18,151,000 after purchasing an additional 6,117 shares in the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 78,054 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $13,449,000 after purchasing an additional 2,854 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $894,000. Albion Financial Group UT raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 10,328 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,780,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 12,508 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,146,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter.

About Agilent Technologies

Agilent Technologies, Inc is a global provider of analytical laboratory instruments, software, services and consumables. The company serves customers in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, chemical, food, environmental, energy and academic research sectors, as well as diagnostic and clinical laboratories.

Agilent’s offerings include liquid and gas chromatography systems, mass spectrometry instruments, spectroscopy and atomic instruments, laboratory automation products, genomic and cell analysis solutions, and related software.