Wesbanco Bank Inc. Buys 190 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 8.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,455 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $365,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.8% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in Agilent Technologies during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in Agilent Technologies by 527.8% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 29,300.0% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 87.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 3.8 %

NYSE:A opened at $139.10 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $96.80 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 $138.86. The firm has a market cap of $40.58 billion, a PE ratio of 32.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.96 and a beta of 1.05.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 21.75% and a return on equity of 25.26%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.236 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $283,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,497,110. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,801,595. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,497,110. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,953 shares of company stock valued at $2,013,630 over the last quarter. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on A shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 price target on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.36.

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.