Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Invests $1.80 Million in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 14,018 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,799,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,997,845 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,012,086,000 after acquiring an additional 589,219 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Agilent Technologies by 10.7% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 13,227,387 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,560,964,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273,994 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,319,530 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $860,137,000 after buying an additional 115,183 shares in the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP grew its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 15.9% during the second quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 5,775,860 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $681,609,000 after purchasing an additional 792,304 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the second quarter worth $395,088,000.

Insider Activity at Agilent Technologies

In other Agilent Technologies news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.99, for a total value of $464,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 31,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,935,811.54. This trade 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 this link. 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 value of $130,491.64. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,401 shares of company stock valued at $2,468,962.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on A shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $142.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.31.

Agilent Technologies Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of A stock opened at $146.47 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.96. The company has a market capitalization of $41.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.05, a PEG ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 1.29. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.43 and a 52-week high of $160.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $144.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $133.04.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The medical research company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.83 billion. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 25.20% and a net margin of 18.75%.The company’s revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. 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. Research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 6th will be given a dividend of $0.255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 6th. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Agilent Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

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.