Saturna Capital Corp Has $134.48 Million Position in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Saturna Capital Corp cut its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 905,686 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 4,780 shares during the quarter. Agilent Technologies comprises approximately 1.8% of Saturna Capital Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Saturna Capital Corp’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $134,476,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 114.8% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 68.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 234 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Agilent Technologies news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $1,448,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,801,595. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $1,448,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,801,595. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Padraig Mcdonnell sold 1,958 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $283,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,497,110. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,995 shares of company stock worth $1,739,510.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of A opened at $132.96 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $139.17 and a 200-day moving average of $138.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $38.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.07. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.46 and a 1 year high of $155.35.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.06. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 21.75% and a return on equity of 25.26%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a dividend of $0.236 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on A. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $151.00 price target on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $157.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.36.

Agilent Technologies Company Profile

Agilent Technologies, Inc provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Life Sciences and Applied Markets, Diagnostics and Genomics, and Agilent CrossLab. The Life Sciences and Applied Markets segment offers liquid chromatography systems and components; liquid chromatography mass spectrometry systems; gas chromatography systems and components; gas chromatography mass spectrometry systems; inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry instruments; atomic absorption instruments; microwave plasma-atomic emission spectrometry instruments; inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry instruments; raman spectroscopy; cell analysis plate based assays; flow cytometer; real-time cell analyzer; cell imaging systems; microplate reader; laboratory software; information management and analytics; laboratory automation and robotic systems; dissolution testing; and vacuum pumps, and measurement technologies.