Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Barclays raised their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Finally, HSBC dropped their target price on Agilent Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.35.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:A opened at $138.07 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 company has a market cap of $39.00 billion, a PE ratio of 27.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.25. Agilent Technologies has a 52 week low of $108.35 and a 52 week high of $160.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.36.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. As a group, research analysts expect that Agilent Technologies will post 6.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,663 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $626,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 15.9% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 5,610 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $602,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Agilent Technologies by 54.8% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 599 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,352 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth $273,000.

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.