Bank of New York Mellon Corp Trims Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,393,569 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 14,631 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $321,552,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,976,905 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $442,011,000 after purchasing an additional 183,716 shares during the period. Vestal Point Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $14,848,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 29.8% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,978 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,592,000 after acquiring an additional 7,111 shares during the last quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 42,587 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,721,000 after acquiring an additional 4,805 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 10.8% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 702,631 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $104,327,000 after acquiring an additional 68,670 shares in the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $134.51 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $124.16 and a 12 month high of $155.35. The company has a market capitalization of $38.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.43, a PEG ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $140.90 and its 200 day moving average is $139.28.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.43% and a net margin of 19.80%. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is 22.40%.

Insider Transactions at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $286,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at $5,947,800. This represents a 4.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on A. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays raised shares of Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.38.

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.