Focus Partners Wealth Has $13.73 Million Stock Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 101,225 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $13,732,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its position in Agilent Technologies by 370.0% during the fourth quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 124,575 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $16,735,000 after buying an additional 98,068 shares in the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $835,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 183.7% during the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 38,203 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,132,000 after purchasing an additional 24,739 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,436,700 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $596,026,000 after purchasing an additional 38,348 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $190,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE:A opened at $115.53 on Tuesday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $96.43 and a 1 year high of $155.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $111.31 and a 200-day moving average of $128.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.27.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a $0.248 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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 transaction of $232,737.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,657,456.28. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $211,840.74. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 35,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,161,931.02. This represents a 4.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on A shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $116.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $138.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.00.

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.