Jefferies Financial Group Begins Coverage on Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A)

Stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “hold” rating and a $135.00 price target on the medical research company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 0.32% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Agilent Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $153.00 target price on the stock. HSBC lowered their price target on Agilent Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Bank of America raised shares of Agilent Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $147.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Agilent Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. Two 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.35.

Agilent Technologies Price Performance

Shares of A stock opened at $134.57 on Thursday. Agilent Technologies has a twelve month low of $108.35 and a twelve month high of $160.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $125.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.25.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The medical research company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly 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 predict that Agilent Technologies will post 6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $549,158,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,713,216 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Agilent Technologies by 424.1% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,041,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $240,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,652,244 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 worth $277,807,000 after buying an additional 1,340,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 192.0% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,412,535 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $192,204,000 after acquiring an additional 928,821 shares during the period.

About Agilent Technologies

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.