Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Given New $175.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) had its target price lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $150.00 to $175.00 in a research note published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on A. Wall Street Zen upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Agilent Technologies from $142.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Rothschild Redb upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.08.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 2.4%

A stock opened at $157.25 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.58 billion, a PE ratio of 36.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 1.29. Agilent Technologies has a 52 week low of $96.43 and a 52 week high of $160.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $140.80 and a 200 day moving average of $126.03.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The medical research company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.01. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 17.97% and a return on equity of 25.51%. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 EPS. Agilent Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Agilent Technologies has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.350-1.380 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 5.860-6.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 6th will be given a $0.255 dividend. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 6th. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 23.94%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 911 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total transaction of $130,491.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 32,058 shares in the company, valued at $4,591,987.92. This trade represents a 2.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,663 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $626,000 after buying an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 36,267 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,243,000 after buying an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 236,725 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $27,692,000 after acquiring an additional 11,079 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 121,147 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $14,172,000 after acquiring an additional 4,468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 141.5% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 935,893 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $109,481,000 after acquiring an additional 548,344 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.41% of the company’s stock.

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.