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Agilent Technologies, Inc. (A), headquartered in Santa Clara, California, provides application-focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets. Valued at $39.30 billion by market cap, the company provides laboratories worldwide with instruments, software, services, consumables, applications, and expertise.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are generally described as “large-cap stocks,” and A perfectly fits into that category, signifying its substantial size, stability, and dominance in its industry.
The analytical and clinical laboratory technologies major has fallen 13.3% from its 52-week high of $155.35, which it hit on May 17. Shares of A are down 7.1% over the past three months, underperforming the broader S&P 500 Healthcare Sector SPDR’s (XLV) marginal gains over the same time frame.
Longer term, A shares have risen 13.4% over the past year, and in 2024, the stock is down 3.5%. By contrast, the XLV is up 7.2% on a YTD basis and 11.4% over the past 52 weeks.
The stock has been trading below its 50-day moving average since late May but above its 200-day moving average since late November 2023.
On May 30, A shares fell more than 8% after the company reported its Q2 results. Its net revenue of $1.57 billion came below the consensus estimate of $1.58 billion. The company’s adjusted EPS of $1.22 surpassed the Wall Street forecasts of $1.19. For Q3, A expects its adjusted EPS to be between $1.25 and $1.28 and revenue between $1.54 billion and $1.58 billion.
For fiscal 2024, A cut its revenue estimate to between $6.42 billion and $6.50 billion, down from the previous estimate of $6.71 billion and $6.81 billion, below the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. The company expects adjusted EPS between $5.15 and $5.25.
Rival Bruker Corporation (BRKR) has underperformed A. BRKR stock has declined 11% in the past 52 weeks and is down 11.2% on a YTD basis.
Despite its recent underperformance compared to the healthcare sector, analysts are optimistic about A’s prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the 15 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $138.71 is only a 3% premium to current levels.
On the date of publication, Dipanjan Banchur did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
