Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Increases Stock Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 50.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,984 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,998 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $2,013,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB bought a new position in Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $2,726,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth about $12,961,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 173.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 27,113 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,026,000 after buying an additional 17,203 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,732 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $406,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 18.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 26,388 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,907,000 after acquiring an additional 4,118 shares during the period.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE A opened at $135.19 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $140.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $139.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.07. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.16 and a 12-month high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its 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. The firm had revenue of $1.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.80% and a return on equity of 25.43%. The business’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.248 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 22.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,911 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $286,650.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,947,800. This represents a 4.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $157.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Agilent Technologies from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.38.

Agilent Technologies Company 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.