Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A Shares Purchased by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 52.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,311 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,421 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $3,113,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 13.8% during 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 buying an additional 1,713,216 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,681,792 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,725,611,000 after buying an additional 241,029 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,425,861 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,006,519,000 after buying an additional 25,139 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,041,881 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $686,049,000 after buying an additional 692,202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $549,158,000. 87.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on A. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Two research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.35.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 1.1%

Agilent Technologies stock opened at $138.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.18 billion, a PE ratio of 27.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $125.21. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $108.35 and a 12 month 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.08. Agilent Technologies had a return on equity of 24.33% and a net margin of 19.55%.The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. The business’s revenue 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. On average, analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Agilent Technologies 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.