# Agilent Technologies (A.US)

Canonical: https://gigainvestors.com/s/A

Analysis as of: 2026-10-16T07:26:05.153Z. Financial observations: FY1998–FY2026.

Listing currency: USD. Reporting currency: USD.

## Verdict

A wonderful business at too high a price

Quality tests for Buy: pass (profit record: pass; earnings resilience is evidence only). Published buy qualification: no.

Share price: $175.55 per share; close as of 2026-10-15.

Estimated value: low $68.87 per share, central $89.24 per share, high $103.52 per share. Buy at or below the central value $89.24 per share. Valuation as of 2026-10-16T07:26:05.153Z; scenarios are not confidence intervals.

Expected annual return: 6.5% at the stated quote. About 6.5% a year at today's price (required return 10.0%). required return 10.0% a year (10% floor; US 10-year bond 5.1% + 4 points).

## Checklist

### understandable: pass

- 2 revenue declines in the last 10 years (informational)

- Financial history: 10 years

- Years with declining revenue: 2

- Years with a net loss: 0

- Operating margin variation: 0.11×

Chart: Operating margin; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: 0.19×

- FY2018: 0.18×

- FY2019: 0.18×

- FY2020: 0.16×

- FY2021: 0.21×

- FY2022: 0.24×

- FY2023: 0.20×

- FY2024: 0.23×

- FY2025: 0.21×

- LTM to Jul 2026: 0.22×

### moat: pass

- ROIC, median of available years: 41.9%

- ROIC, second-lowest year: 33.0%

- Typical minus recent gross margin: 0.2 pp

- Typical gross margin (annual median): 53.9%

- Recent gross margin (lower of latest and 3-year median): 53.7%

- Years with nonpositive capital: 0

- Capital spending / revenue: 4.1%

- ROIC including acquisitions, ten-year median: 16.2%

Chart: ROIC excluding acquisitions; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: 46.0%

- FY2018: 51.3%

- FY2019: 43.2%

- FY2020: 33.0%

- FY2021: 45.7%

- FY2022: 44.0%

- FY2023: 40.6%

- FY2024: 34.4%

- FY2025: 35.0%

- LTM to Jul 2026: 31.5%

### economics: pass

- Owner earnings / net income, 5-yr: 1.00×

- Cash conversion uses consolidated totals: No

- Owner earnings, five-year total: $6.3B

- Net income, five-year total: $6.3B

- Return on incremental invested capital: 118.2%

- Working capital / revenue, annual change: 0.8 pp

- Working capital / revenue, change between three-year averages: 5.9 pp

- Working capital / revenue, final three-year average: 27.7%

Chart: Annual owner cash / profit; fiscal year observations.

- FY2021: 1.11×

- FY2022: 1.02×

- FY2023: 0.98×

- FY2024: 0.91×

- FY2025: 0.98×

### management: pass

- Historical market-dollar context (not the management verdict): 2016 to 2025 (9 years)

- buybacks leaned toward cheaper years (informational)

- ROIC first 3 years vs last 3 years: 46.0% vs 35.0%

- Per-share earnings: 1.40 to 4.43 (three-year endpoint medians)

- Management verdict uses per-share economic progress: Yes

- Ordinary dilution, 10-year annual growth: -1.6%

- Ordinary dilution, 5-year annual growth: -1.8%

- Market cap gain: $27B

- Cumulative retained earnings: -$4.7B

- Diluted shares, 10-year annual growth: -1.6%

- Diluted shares, 5-year annual growth: -1.8%

- $1 test, starting fiscal year: FY2016

- $1 test, ending fiscal year: FY2025

- Per-share value growth: 15.5%

- Per-share value change: $3.03

- Per-share value, starting three-year median: $1.40

- Per-share value, ending three-year median: $4.43

- Buybacks concentrated in cheaper years (correlation): 0.45

- Average buyback yield: 2.1%

- Buyback history: 10 years

- Debt-funded buybacks: No

- Acquisition spending: $3.0B

- Cumulative net income, 10 years: $9.5B

- ROIC, first three-year median: 46.0%

- ROIC, last three-year median: 35.0%

Chart: Earnings per share; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: $1.40

- FY2017: $2.10

- FY2018: $0.97

- FY2019: $3.37

- FY2020: $2.30

- FY2021: $3.94

- FY2022: $4.18

- FY2023: $4.19

- FY2024: $4.43

- FY2025: $4.57

### accounting: pass

- Sloan accruals: -2.0%

- Receivables to sales index (DSRI): 1.05×

- Restructuring years, last five: 0

- Stock compensation / operating cash flow: 8.2%

- Earnings backed by cash: Yes

- Operating cash / earnings: 1.20×

- Accounting red flags: 0

- Goodwill and intangibles / equity: 0.73×

Chart: Sloan accruals; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: -4.3%

- FY2017: -2.4%

- FY2018: -9.0%

- FY2019: 0.5%

- FY2020: -2.1%

- FY2021: -2.6%

- FY2022: -0.6%

- FY2023: -4.9%

- FY2024: -3.9%

- FY2025: -2.0%

## Holders

- [Edgar Wachenheim](https://gigainvestors.com/GA): tracked 13F investor; follow the investor page for holding quarter and amounts.

- [William Von Mueffling](https://gigainvestors.com/cc): tracked 13F investor; follow the investor page for holding quarter and amounts.

## Price story

Price needs cash profits to grow 13.9% a year for ten years · "Agilent Technologies Sees Growth From China, Replacement Cycles and Lab Automation" (finance.yahoo.com, Sep 2026) · sales +6.1%

Story as of 2026-10-16T09:58:12.175Z; price observation 2026-10-15.

Price needs cash profits to grow 13.9% a year for ten years

- 2025-08-28: Agilent Technologies (A) Raises 2025 Revenue Guidance With Strong Q3 US$160M Sales Surge ([finance.yahoo.com](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/agilent-technologies-raises-2025-revenue-173007805.html))

- 2025-11-25: Agilent Technology Q4 Earnings Improve, Expects 6% To 8% Revenue Growth In Q1 ([nasdaq.com](https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/agilent-technology-q4-earnings-improve-expects-6-8-revenue-growth-q1))

- 2026-02-26: Agilent Q1 Earnings Miss Estimates, Revenues Up Y/Y, Shares Fall ([finance.yahoo.com](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/agilent-q1-earnings-miss-estimates-175400578.html))

- 2026-05-28: Agilent Technologies Sees Broad-Based Growth Momentum on Product Cycles, End-Market Strength, RBC Says ([finance.yahoo.com](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/agilent-technologies-sees-broad-based-154944987.html))

- 2026-08-26: Agilent Technologies beats estimates, raises guidance on strong demand ([finance.yahoo.com](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/agilent-technologies-beats-estimates-raises-204301512.html))

- 2026-09-23: Agilent Technologies Sees Growth From China, Replacement Cycles and Lab Automation ([finance.yahoo.com](https://finance.yahoo.com/healthcare/articles/agilent-technologies-sees-growth-china-110205138.html))

### Sales · FY2025–2026

sales +6.1%; source https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm; observed 2025-12-22.

- FY2017: $4.5B 

- FY2018: $4.9B 

- FY2019: $5.2B 

- FY2020: $5.3B 

- FY2021: $6.3B 

- FY2022: $6.8B 

- FY2023: $6.8B 

- FY2024: $6.5B 

- FY2025: $6.9B 

- FY2026: $7.4B 

### Gross margin · FY2026

gross margin 53.7%; source https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm; observed 2025-12-22.

- FY2017: 53.9% 

- FY2018: 54.7% 

- FY2019: 54.3% 

- FY2020: 53.1% 

- FY2021: 53.9% 

- FY2022: 54.4% 

- FY2023: 50.7% 

- FY2024: 54.3% 

- FY2025: 52.4% 

- FY2026: 53.7% 

## Owner memo

Memo as of 2026-10-16T08:06:05.509Z.

### How it makes money

Operates in diagnostics & research; annual sales are USD 6.9 billion.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm (filed 2025-12-22); FY2025: revenue 6948000000; grossProfit 3643000000; margin = grossProfit / revenue.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16); A.US: Agilent Technologies, Inc. provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Life Sciences and Diagnostics Markets, Agilent CrossLab, and Applied Markets. The Life Sciences and Diagnostics Markets segment offers liquid chromatography systems and components; and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry systems. This segment is also involved in the genomics, contract development and manufacturing organization, pathology, companion diagnostics, and biomolecular analysis businesses. The Agilent CrossLab segment provides various services, including repairs, parts, maintenance, installations, training, compliance support, software as a service, asset management, consulting, and other custom services. This segment also offers consumables, including gas chromatography and liquid chromatography columns, sample preparation products, custom chemistries, and various laboratory supplies; software and informatics solutions comprising software for instrument control, data acquisition, data analysis, secure storage of results, and laboratory information and workflow management; and OpenLab laboratory software, an open software platform that enables customers to capture, analyze, and share scientific data throughout the lab and across the enterprise. In addition, it provides automated sample preparation solutions, such as liquid handling, plate management, consumables, and scheduling software. The Applied Markets segment offers products in the areas of gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, spectroscopy, vacuum technology, and remarketed instruments. It markets its products through direct sales, distributors, resellers, manufacturer's representatives, and electronic commerce. Agilent Technologies, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

### Why customers stay

Margins ranged from 50.7% to 54.3% during 2023–25; it earns 41.9% on its capital.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2023: grossProfit / revenue = 50.7%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2024: grossProfit / revenue = 54.3%.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm (filed 2025-12-22); FY2025: grossProfit / revenue = 52.4%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); 10-year return on capital observations [[2017,0.4600954513061568],[2018,0.5127399650959861],[2019,0.431651376146789],[2020,0.3300208665873093],[2021,0.45741748989672204],[2022,0.43957332418210937],[2023,0.40643260939446885],[2024,0.34398077757010154],[2025,0.3503659309262766],[2026,0.3146547724560287]]; median 0.4190419927706289. ROIC follows the displayed moat series; financial companies use return on tangible equity.

### Where the cash goes

Spends 7.4% of cash earnings on expansion; earns over 100% on new investment.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2016: growth capex 0; upkeep 139000000; owner earnings 568000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2017: growth capex 0; upkeep 176000000; owner earnings 722000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2018: growth capex 0; upkeep 177000000; owner earnings 349000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2019: growth capex 0; upkeep 156000000; owner earnings 1153000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2020: growth capex 0; upkeep 119000000; owner earnings 908000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2021: growth capex 0; upkeep 189000000; owner earnings 1342000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2022: growth capex 0; upkeep 291000000; owner earnings 1280000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2023: growth capex 0; upkeep 298000000; owner earnings 1213000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); FY2024: growth capex 0; upkeep 378000000; owner earnings 1168000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm (filed 2025-12-22); FY2025: growth capex 95266111.61299092; upkeep 311733888.3870091; owner earnings 1279266111.6129909. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.074469346720107.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); Incremental return on capital 1.1823023372993426, from the economics test's unchanged annual inputs.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); Dividend observations: [[2016,150000000],[2017,170000000],[2018,191000000],[2019,206000000],[2020,222000000],[2021,236000000],[2022,250000000],[2023,265000000],[2024,274000000],[2025,282000000]]. Zero only counted when supported by a complete cash-flow statement.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm (filed 2025-12-22); FY2025: cash repurchases 425000000 USD.

### Are managers owners

Insiders own 0.2% of the company.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16); A.US SharesStats.PercentInsiders = 0.191 percentage points; cache date 2026-10-16.

### What could break it

US import tariffs could raise product costs.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm (filed 2025-12-22); l by our board of directors.

Looking Forward. Our primary focus remains on enhancing our customers’ experience, delivering differentiated product solutions and driving productivity improvements. After an extended period of constrained capital spending, many customers' ability to spend capital budgets has begun to normalize, with the exception of customers receiving funding from the U.S. federal government. We remain optimistic about the long-term health of our key end markets. While the recent tariff changes adversely impacted our costs of revenue beginning in the second half of fiscal year 2025, we expect to substantially mitigate the impact during our fiscal year 2026. With inflationary and tariff-related pressures remaining fluid, we are actively pursuing mitigation strategies through supply chain optimization, targeted pricing actions, and other cost-efficiency initiatives to protect margins and sustain long-term growth.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Management bases its estimates on historical experience and various other assumptions believed to be reasonable. Although these estimates are based on management's best knowledge of current events and actions that may impact the company in the future, actual results may be different from the estimates. An accounting policy is deemed to be critical if it requires an accounting estimate to be made based on assumptions about matters that are highly uncertain at the time the estimate is made and if different estimates that reasonably could have been used or changes in the accounting estimate that are reasonably likely to occur could materially change the financial statements. Our critical accounting policies are those that affect our financial statements materially and involve difficult, subjective or complex judgments by management. Those policies are revenue recognition, inventory valuation, retirement and post-retirement plan assumptions, valuation of goodwill and purchased intangible assets, restructuring and accounting for income taxes.

Revenue Recognition. We enter into contracts to sell products, services or combinations of products and services. Products may include hardware or software and services may include one-time service 

### What the price says

The price assumes cash profits grow 13.9% yearly over ten years; actual growth was 10.5%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2025-12-22); Ten-year compound average after fade. Initial solved rate 0.2524319075080462. Price 175.55; FX 1; discount 0.1; same compounder ten-year fade to terminal 0.03. FY2015 owner earnings/share 1.6597014925373135 → FY2025 4.488653023203477. Closing-price date 2026-10-15.

## Monthly share-price history (USD per share)

- 2016-10: $43.57 per share

- 2016-11: $43.98 per share

- 2016-12: $45.56 per share

- 2017-01: $48.97 per share

- 2017-02: $51.30 per share

- 2017-03: $52.87 per share

- 2017-04: $55.05 per share

- 2017-05: $60.34 per share

- 2017-06: $59.31 per share

- 2017-07: $59.79 per share

- 2017-08: $64.72 per share

- 2017-09: $64.20 per share

- 2017-10: $68.03 per share

- 2017-11: $69.24 per share

- 2017-12: $66.97 per share

- 2018-01: $73.43 per share

- 2018-02: $68.59 per share

- 2018-03: $66.90 per share

- 2018-04: $65.74 per share

- 2018-05: $61.92 per share

- 2018-06: $61.84 per share

- 2018-07: $66.04 per share

- 2018-08: $67.54 per share

- 2018-09: $70.54 per share

- 2018-10: $64.79 per share

- 2018-11: $72.35 per share

- 2018-12: $67.46 per share

- 2019-01: $76.05 per share

- 2019-02: $79.44 per share

- 2019-03: $80.38 per share

- 2019-04: $78.50 per share

- 2019-05: $67.05 per share

- 2019-06: $74.67 per share

- 2019-07: $69.41 per share

- 2019-08: $71.11 per share

- 2019-09: $76.63 per share

- 2019-10: $75.75 per share

- 2019-11: $80.77 per share

- 2019-12: $85.31 per share

- 2020-01: $82.56 per share

- 2020-02: $77.07 per share

- 2020-03: $71.62 per share

- 2020-04: $76.66 per share

- 2020-05: $88.14 per share

- 2020-06: $88.37 per share

- 2020-07: $96.33 per share

- 2020-08: $100.42 per share

- 2020-09: $100.94 per share

- 2020-10: $102.09 per share

- 2020-11: $116.90 per share

- 2020-12: $118.49 per share

- 2021-01: $120.17 per share

- 2021-02: $122.07 per share

- 2021-03: $127.14 per share

- 2021-04: $133.64 per share

- 2021-05: $138.13 per share

- 2021-06: $147.81 per share

- 2021-07: $153.23 per share

- 2021-08: $175.47 per share

- 2021-09: $157.53 per share

- 2021-10: $157.49 per share

- 2021-11: $150.90 per share

- 2021-12: $159.65 per share

- 2022-01: $139.32 per share

- 2022-02: $130.36 per share

- 2022-03: $132.33 per share

- 2022-04: $119.27 per share

- 2022-05: $127.56 per share

- 2022-06: $118.77 per share

- 2022-07: $134.10 per share

- 2022-08: $128.25 per share

- 2022-09: $121.55 per share

- 2022-10: $138.35 per share

- 2022-11: $154.98 per share

- 2022-12: $149.65 per share

- 2023-01: $152.08 per share

- 2023-02: $141.97 per share

- 2023-03: $138.34 per share

- 2023-04: $135.43 per share

- 2023-05: $115.67 per share

- 2023-06: $120.25 per share

- 2023-07: $121.77 per share

- 2023-08: $121.07 per share

- 2023-09: $111.82 per share

- 2023-10: $103.37 per share

- 2023-11: $127.80 per share

- 2023-12: $139.03 per share

- 2024-01: $130.10 per share

- 2024-02: $137.36 per share

- 2024-03: $145.51 per share

- 2024-04: $137.04 per share

- 2024-05: $130.41 per share

- 2024-06: $129.63 per share

- 2024-07: $141.40 per share

- 2024-08: $142.92 per share

- 2024-09: $148.48 per share

- 2024-10: $130.31 per share

- 2024-11: $137.97 per share

- 2024-12: $134.34 per share

- 2025-01: $151.52 per share

- 2025-02: $127.92 per share

- 2025-03: $116.98 per share

- 2025-04: $107.60 per share

- 2025-05: $111.92 per share

- 2025-06: $118.01 per share

- 2025-07: $114.81 per share

- 2025-08: $125.66 per share

- 2025-09: $128.35 per share

- 2025-10: $146.36 per share

- 2025-11: $153.50 per share

- 2025-12: $136.07 per share

- 2026-01: $133.85 per share

- 2026-02: $121.38 per share

- 2026-03: $113.98 per share

- 2026-04: $115.55 per share

- 2026-05: $135.53 per share

- 2026-06: $132.83 per share

- 2026-07: $138.37 per share

- 2026-08: $153.56 per share

- 2026-09: $172.31 per share

- 2026-10: $171.60 per share

## Annual estimated value (USD per share)

- FY2016: low $31.70 per share, central $35.15 per share, high $39.74 per share

- FY2017: low $32.15 per share, central $35.49 per share, high $39.93 per share

- FY2018: low $29.37 per share, central $32.50 per share, high $36.68 per share

- FY2019: low $36.48 per share, central $51.38 per share, high $59.68 per share

- FY2020: low $37.94 per share, central $45.39 per share, high $52.25 per share

- FY2021: low $48.01 per share, central $58.39 per share, high $67.40 per share

- FY2022: low $51.70 per share, central $58.51 per share, high $67.57 per share

- FY2023: low $55.21 per share, central $63.57 per share, high $73.23 per share

- FY2024: low $52.64 per share, central $62.89 per share, high $72.68 per share

- FY2025: low $64.91 per share, central $83.98 per share, high $97.34 per share

Historical values use today's bond yield for every fiscal year

Historical values use today's FX rate into trading currency for every fiscal year

Historical values use current restated fundamentals and current commodity classification; they are not point-in-time estimates

Prior published observations retained from 2026-10-15T06:31:40.074Z where newer inputs omit a numeric field or fiscal period.

## Sources

[Original 10-K filing](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090872/000109087225000087/a-20251031.htm); period 2025-10-31, filed 2025-12-22.

Estimates depend on assumptions and are not guarantees or investment advice. Underlying data remains subject to its source licenses; public reading does not grant bulk redistribution rights.