First Horizon Advisors Inc. Has $2.74 Million Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. cut its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 28.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,428 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 8,005 shares during the quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $2,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $121,000. Waterfront Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $204,000. JLB & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. JLB & Associates Inc. now owns 25,382 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,410,000 after purchasing an additional 3,169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 298.8% in the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 155,622 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $20,906,000 after purchasing an additional 116,602 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE A opened at $135.33 on Monday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.16 and a 1-year high of $155.35. The company has a 50 day moving average of $140.97 and a 200-day moving average of $139.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $38.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.62, a PEG ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.07.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The medical research company reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.43% and a net margin of 19.80%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.38 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays raised shares of Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America decreased 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. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $286,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,947,800. This represents a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

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.