BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Sells 6,469 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S trimmed its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 35.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 11,997 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 6,469 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $1,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in A. CKW Financial Group increased its stake in Agilent Technologies by 114.9% in 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 during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 161.1% in the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 66.5% in the 4th quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 263 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Barclays cut their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $138.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $161.00 to $159.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.00.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 2.6 %

NYSE:A opened at $102.83 on Wednesday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $96.43 and a 1-year high of $155.35. The company has a market capitalization of $29.32 billion, a PE ratio of 23.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $118.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $131.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 1.66.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced 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. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.27% and a return on equity of 25.56%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $0.248 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 1,908 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total value of $232,737.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,657,456.28. This represents a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Daniel K. Podolsky sold 1,819 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $211,840.74. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 35,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,161,931.02. This trade represents a 4.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

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.