Agilent (A) PT Lowered to $134 at BofA Securities
BofA Securities analyst Derik de Bruin lowered the price target on Agilent (NYSE: A) to $134.00 (from $145.00) while maintaining a Neutral rating.
The analyst comments "While there was some question going into the print as to whether A would lower their guide, the magnitude of the FY cut is significantly more than anyone anticipated. The immediate question is if this is Agilent-specific, or should be seen as a worrying sign for the rest of the group. Notably, ‘A’ mgmt. emphasized yoy order growth in F2Q (first time in 7 quarters), even in instruments (ex-China) – the reason for the guide cut was that orders didn’t accelerate as much as mgmt. previously expected, making a F2H inflection unlikely. Other Tools vendors weren’t expecting such an inflection, and positive order commentary should be well-received. Additionally, A’s areas of weakness (NASD, pharma instrumentation, China stimulus FY-end-timing) are also A-specific, so for now, our view of the Tools group or TMO/DHR remains unchanged."