Occidental Asset Management LLC Purchases 1,043 Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Occidental Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 6.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,315 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,043 shares during the quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $2,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Delta Asset Management LLC TN purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Agilent Technologies from $144.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $164.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 24th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 24th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.12.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.78, for a total transaction of $415,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 24,219 shares in the company, valued at $2,876,732.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Michael R. Mcmullen sold 944 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $122,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 260,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,912,970. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Rodney Gonsalves sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.78, for a total transaction of $415,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 24,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,876,732.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

NYSE:A traded down $2.62 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $113.29. 571,294 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,772,955. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $121.61 and its 200-day moving average is $126.47. The firm has a market cap of $33.15 billion, a PE ratio of 30.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.03. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.00 and a twelve month high of $160.26.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 15th. The medical research company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 16.20% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Agilent Technologies

Agilent Technologies, Inc provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. 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; vacuum pumps, and measurement technologies.