Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Boosts Stock Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,213,739 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 47,495 shares during the quarter. Agilent Technologies comprises approximately 0.8% of Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $700,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CKW Financial Group boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.9% in the fourth quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 187 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 161.1% during the 4th quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 66.5% in the fourth quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 263 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $37,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays upgraded Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $150.83.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.7 %

A opened at $119.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.20. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $134.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.80. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $117.17 and a one year high of $155.35. The stock has a market cap of $33.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.11.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.56% and a net margin of 19.27%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $0.248 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insider Transactions at Agilent Technologies

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

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.