Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Invests $8.39 Million in Agilent Technologies, Inc. $A

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 63,180 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,392,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new position in shares of Agilent Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the first quarter worth $27,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Agilent Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $28,000.

Trending Headlines about Agilent Technologies

Here are the key news stories impacting Agilent Technologies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Agilent reported fiscal Q3 revenue of $1.88 billion, up 8.1% year over year and ahead of the $1.84 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS was $1.62, beating expectations of approximately $1.49 and rising from $1.37 a year earlier. Operating profit, cash flow and margins also improved. Agilent Reports Third-Quarter Fiscal Year 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its fiscal 2026 outlook to adjusted EPS of $6.18-$6.21, above the $6.06 analyst consensus, and projected approximately $7.5 billion in revenue versus expectations of $7.4 billion. Management cited improving demand for laboratory instruments used in research and drug development. Agilent raises annual profit forecast on improving lab tools demand
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment strengthened significantly following the results. Citigroup and JPMorgan raised their price targets to $190, while RBC lifted its target to $185. Barclays, Stifel, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, TD Cowen and Bernstein also raised targets, with most assigning Buy, Overweight or Outperform ratings. The revised targets imply roughly 11%-21% potential upside from the referenced trading level. Analyst price-target revisions
• Neutral Sentiment: Agilent is trading near its 52-week high and above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages. That momentum supports investor confidence, although the stock’s valuation—around 32 times earnings and a PEG ratio above 2.7—leaves less room for disappointment.
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional positioning was mixed in the latest filings: 594 investors added shares while 550 reduced holdings. Significant purchases by FMR, JPMorgan, Bank of New York Mellon and T. Rowe Price were offset by large sales from several other institutions.

Agilent Technologies Stock Up 1.6%

Agilent Technologies stock opened at $157.60 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $44.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.25. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $108.35 and a 1-year high of $163.75. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $139.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Agilent Technologies (NYSE:A) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The medical research company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.13. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 19.53% and a return on equity of 24.84%. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Agilent Technologies has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.710-1.740 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.180-6.210 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on A. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Agilent Technologies from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Agilent Technologies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on Agilent Technologies from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Agilent Technologies from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Agilent Technologies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.33.

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.