Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Cut to “Peer Perform” at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) from an outperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

A has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $155.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a hold rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (down from $152.00) on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $67.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $141.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $163.00 to $153.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $136.88.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE A opened at $129.63 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 1.07. Agilent Technologies has a 52 week low of $96.80 and a 52 week high of $155.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $139.56 and a 200-day moving average of $138.47.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The medical research company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 18.84% and a return on equity of 26.25%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. Agilent Technologies’s revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 2nd will be issued a $0.236 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 2nd. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In related news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 15,000 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.28, for a total transaction of $1,999,200.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 49,486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,595,494.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $254,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 25,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,274,050. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Dominique Grau sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.28, for a total transaction of $1,999,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 49,486 shares in the company, valued at $6,595,494.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 120.7% in the fourth quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 192 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 527.8% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the first quarter worth about $34,000.

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.