B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Buys Shares of 15,697 Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 15,697 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,331,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in A. Prospera Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $375,000. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 1.4% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,451 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $253,000. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 339.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 6,862 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,019,000 after acquiring an additional 5,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 3.1% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 292,789 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $43,473,000 after purchasing an additional 8,874 shares during the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of A opened at $131.94 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $137.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.78. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.48 and a 52-week high of $155.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 target price on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $1,448,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,801,595. The trade was a 19.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

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.