LPL Financial LLC Has $15.68 Million Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116,679 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 793 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $15,675,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sienna Gestion grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 29.8% in the 4th quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 78,445 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $10,537,000 after buying an additional 17,991 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 33,898 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,664 shares during the last quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 4,805 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 49,288 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,621,000 after purchasing an additional 6,802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 43,862 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,892,000 after purchasing an additional 3,915 shares during the period.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 2.8 %

A opened at $113.67 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $132.90 and its 200-day moving average is $136.32. The company has a market cap of $32.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.13, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.11. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.36 and a 1-year high of $155.35. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. Equities research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on A shares. StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America cut their price target on Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $150.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $232,737.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 21,786 shares in the company, valued at $2,657,456.28. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $286,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,652 shares in the company, valued at $5,947,800. The trade was a 4.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

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.