Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC Has $504,000 Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 30.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,755 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,620 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $504,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of A. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,726,000. Brookstone Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 12.1% in the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 1,903 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 11,491 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,706,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its position in Agilent Technologies by 8.4% during the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,455 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its stake in Agilent Technologies by 5.9% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 44,910 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,668,000 after purchasing an additional 2,498 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on A. StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.38.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $286,650.00. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

NYSE A opened at $143.69 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $139.37. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $124.16 and a twelve month high of $155.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.99 billion, a PE ratio of 32.51, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.09.

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

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.248 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. This is a positive change from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.40%.

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.