First Trust Advisors LP Boosts Stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 12.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 786,052 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 90,095 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.28% of Agilent Technologies worth $89,594,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 87.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Wolfe Research reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, HSBC dropped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.35.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE A opened at $138.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 2.10. The firm has a market cap of $39.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.84, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $125.55. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $108.35 and a one year high of $160.27.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The medical research company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.08. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.55% and a return on equity of 24.33%. The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.000-6.100 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.480-1.500 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.255 dividend. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.48%.

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.