HSBC Begins Coverage on Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A)

Equities researchers at HSBC began coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target on the medical research company’s stock. HSBC’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 28.86% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Barclays raised Agilent Technologies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $165.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $142.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Rothschild Redb raised shares of Agilent Technologies to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.50.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of A stock opened at $139.68 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $39.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $144.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $133.67. Agilent Technologies has a one year low of $96.43 and a one year high of $160.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.52.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The medical research company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.01. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.20% and a net margin of 18.75%.The business had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Agilent Technologies has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.350-1.380 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.860-6.000 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Agilent Technologies will post 5.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.99, for a total transaction of $464,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 31,846 shares in the company, valued at $4,935,811.54. This represents a 8.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 911 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total transaction of $130,491.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 32,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,591,987.92. The trade was a 2.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 16,401 shares of company stock valued at $2,468,962.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in A. Capital A Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Agilent Technologies by 10,600.0% in the second quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 212 shares during the period. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Davis Capital Management bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 490.0% during the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 236 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000.

Agilent Technologies Company Profile

Agilent Technologies is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, consumables, software and services for laboratories across the life sciences, diagnostics and applied chemical markets. The company’s product portfolio includes analytical instruments such as liquid and gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers, spectroscopy systems, and laboratory automation solutions, together with reagents, supplies and informatics tools that support measurement, testing and data analysis workflows. Agilent also offers instrument maintenance, qualification and laboratory services designed to help customers improve productivity and comply with regulatory requirements.

Founded as a corporate spin-off from Hewlett‑Packard in 1999, Agilent has evolved through a combination of strategic restructuring and acquisitions to concentrate on life sciences, diagnostics and applied laboratories.