Analysts Set Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) PT at $161.20

Shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $161.20.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC began coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Evercore upgraded Agilent Technologies from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th.

Agilent Technologies Stock Down 3.4%

Agilent Technologies stock opened at $111.52 on Tuesday. Agilent Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $96.43 and a fifty-two week high of $160.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.07. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $130.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.76. The stock has a market cap of $31.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.31.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The medical research company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.01). Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 18.26% and a return on equity of 24.49%. The business had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Agilent Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.900-6.040 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.390-1.420 EPS. Research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.255 dividend. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Agilent Technologies’s payout ratio is 22.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Agilent Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of A. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $549,158,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 13.8% in the fourth 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 acquiring an additional 1,713,216 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 424.1% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,041,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $240,956,000 after acquiring an additional 1,652,244 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 132.2% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,354,111 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $277,807,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340,161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Troy Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 74.3% during the second quarter. Troy Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,397,820 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $282,967,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021,865 shares during the period.

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.