Howard Capital Management Inc. Acquires 122 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,123 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $285,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. CKW Financial Group increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 114.9% during the 4th quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 187 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 161.1% during the 4th quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 68.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 234 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. 87.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,947,800. This trade represents a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of Agilent Technologies stock opened at $134.05 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $140.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.31. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $124.16 and a 1 year high of $155.35. The company has a market capitalization of $38.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.58.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.43% and a net margin of 19.80%. The business had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.38 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 22.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on A shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.38.

Agilent Technologies 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.