Yahoo Finance Agilent Technologies (A) Gains But Lags Market: What You Should Know
In the latest trading session, Agilent Technologies (A) closed at $155.50, marking a +0.03% move from the previous day. The stock lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.47%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.11%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 7.94%.
Coming into today, shares of the scientific instrument maker had gained 2.49% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector gained 14.02%, while the S&P 500 gained 7.41%.
Investors will be hoping for strength from Agilent Technologies as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be February 28, 2023. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.31, up 8.26% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $1.69 billion, up 1.08% from the year-ago period.
A's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $5.64 per share and revenue of $6.95 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +8.05% and +1.56%, respectively.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Agilent Technologies. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.09% higher. Agilent Technologies is currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
In terms of valuation, Agilent Technologies is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 27.54. This represents a no noticeable deviation compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 27.54.
Investors should also note that A has a PEG ratio of 2.75 right now. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Electronics - Testing Equipment was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.67 at yesterday's closing price.
The Electronics - Testing Equipment industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 197, which puts it in the bottom 22% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow An in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
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Agilent Technologies, Inc. (A) : Free Stock Analysis Report
