Metis Global Partners LLC Has $2.26 Million Holdings in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A)

Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,197 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 562 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $2,256,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of A. Curi RMB Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 5,606 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 574 shares during the period. Cable Hill Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth about $211,000. Kovack Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies in the third quarter worth $270,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 45,931 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,820,000 after buying an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.5% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 663,767 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $98,556,000 after acquiring an additional 9,703 shares in the last quarter.

Agilent Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of A opened at $127.07 on Friday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a one year low of $112.06 and a one year high of $155.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $138.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $138.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market cap of $36.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.91 and a beta of 1.07.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The medical research company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Agilent Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued 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 dividend yield of 0.74%. Agilent Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $151.00 price target on shares of Agilent Technologies in a report on Monday, August 26th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Agilent Technologies from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Agilent Technologies has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Dominique Grau sold 9,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was 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 owns 40,011 shares in the company, valued at $5,801,595. This trade represents a 19.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,497,110. This trade represents a 7.51 % 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 valued at $1,739,510.

About Agilent Technologies

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.