Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Stock Price

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) had its price objective reduced by analysts at Barclays from $165.00 to $150.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 26.87% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Bank of America upped their price target on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.43.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 5.2%

Agilent Technologies stock traded down $6.49 during trading on Thursday, reaching $118.23. 738,005 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,044,753. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $135.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.97. The company has a market capitalization of $33.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.80, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.30. 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 has a 52-week low of $96.43 and a 52-week high of $160.27.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The medical research company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.01). Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 25.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.900-6.040 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.390-1.420 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Agilent Technologies

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at $549,158,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,147,601 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,925,064,000 after purchasing an additional 1,713,216 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 424.1% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,041,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $240,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,652,244 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 132.2% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,354,111 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $277,807,000 after purchasing an additional 1,340,161 shares during the period. Finally, Troy Asset Management Ltd increased its position in Agilent Technologies by 74.3% during the 2nd quarter. Troy Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,397,820 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $282,967,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021,865 shares in the last quarter.

Trending Headlines about Agilent Technologies

Here are the key news stories impacting Agilent Technologies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management raised FY‑2026 targets and highlighted margin programs — Agilent outlined a $7.3B–$7.5B FY26 revenue target and is expanding its “Ignite” operating system to drive margin improvement, signaling management confidence in top‑line growth and structural cost leverage. Agilent outlines $7.3B–$7.5B FY26 revenue target while expanding Ignite Operating System for margin growth
• Positive Sentiment: Company issued FY26 EPS guidance that brackets street expectations — Agilent set FY26 EPS at $5.90–$6.04 (consensus ~$5.93) and Q2 EPS at $1.39–$1.42 (broadly in line), providing a clear roadmap for the year and reducing near‑term forecast uncertainty. (Guidance reported in earnings release and slides.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 results were broadly in line with Street estimates — revenue of ~$1.80B (≈+7% YoY) and EPS ~$1.36 were essentially in line with expectations; management said U.S. snowstorms disrupted shipments and weighed on the quarter. That helps explain the miss but leaves execution questions to watch. Agilent reports in-line first quarter, says results hurt by US snowstorm
• Neutral Sentiment: Management commentary and slides available — the earnings call and slide deck walk through segment performance, Ignite initiatives and near‑term cadence; investors should review the transcript/slides for guidance sensitivity and margin assumptions. Agilent Technologies, Inc. (A) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Small EPS/revenue misses and operating cash‑flow weakness pressured sentiment — Q1 EPS missed by $0.01 and revenue was a touch below consensus; some reports flagged a meaningful decline in operating cash flow vs. prior year, which raises short‑term liquidity and cash conversion concerns. Agilent Technologies earnings missed by $0.01, revenue fell short of estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/ownership dynamics add downside risk — large institutional rebalancing and recent insider sales (reported in filings/third‑party summaries) are noted by some data providers and could add selling pressure if execution slips. Agilent Technologies Inc. (A) Releases Q1 2026 Earnings: Revenue Up, EPS and Operating Cash Flow Miss

About Agilent Technologies

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.