Preview — Barron's

Agilent Technologies A is set to report fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 results on Nov. 25.

For the fiscal fourth quarter, the company expects revenues of $1.641-$1.691 billion, suggesting a decline of 2.8-0.2% on a reported basis and 1.9-1.1% on a core basis from the year-ago quarter’s actuals.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $1.67 billion, indicating a marginal decline of 0.86% from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.

Agilent’s non-GAAP earnings are expected to be $1.38-$1.42 per share.

Agilent Technologies, Inc. Price and Consensus

Agilent Technologies, Inc. price-consensus-chart | Agilent Technologies, Inc. Quote

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $1.41 per share, unchanged over the past 30 days. The figure indicates 2.17% year-over-year growth.

Agilent’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the four trailing quarters, averaging 4.43%.

Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Let us see how things have shaped up before this announcement.

Factors to Note for A’s Q4 Earnings

The company is expected to have gained from the growing momentum across the Agilent Cross Lab Group (“ACG”) segment in the fiscal fourth quarter.

The ACG segment has been a consistent growth driver. It continued its positive trajectory with 4% reported revenue growth and 5% core growth to $411 million in the fiscal third quarter. The segment's operating margin improved 130 basis points year over year to 34.0%, driven by productivity gains and a favorable product mix.

These trends suggest that ACG's momentum likely contributed positively to Agilent's fiscal fourth-quarter performance.

However, the declining momentum in the Life Sciences & Applied Markets Group, and Diagnostics and Genomics Group segments has likely posed significant challenges for Agilent. Macroeconomic uncertainties, coupled with weak market conditions in China and Hong Kong, are expected to have adversely impacted these segments in the quarter under review.

The Environmental and Forensics sectors demonstrated stronger performance, achieving 4% year-over-year growth and outpacing other segments within the end market. Still, declines across all regions other than Europe and most end markets raise concerns about broader performance challenges.

Agilent's commitment to sustainability is reflected in the launch of innovative solutions like the 8850 GC, which emphasizes environmental responsibility and cost efficiency. This approach appeals to environmentally conscious customers and strengthens the company’s alignment with green initiatives.

The acquisitions of BIOVECTRA and Sigsense signal a focus on expanding capabilities in biopharma and digital ecosystems. BIOVECTRA's contribution to revenue growth in cutting-edge modalities like CRISPR and microbial fermentation is particularly promising.

What Our Model Says

According to the Zacks model, the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. But that is not the exact case here.

A has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they are reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Stocks to Consider

Here are a few companies worth considering, as, per our model, they possess the right combination of elements to exceed earnings estimates this time around:

Braze BRZE has an Earnings ESP of +100% and a Zacks Rank of #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Braze’s shares have lost 28.5% year to date. BRZE is set to report its third-quarter fiscal 2025 results on Dec. 09.

Hewlett Packard HPE currently has an Earnings ESP of +1.51% and a Zacks Rank #3.

Hewlett-Packard shares have gained 28% year to date. HPE is set to report its fourth-quarter 2024 results on Dec. 05.

Pure Storage PSTG has an Earnings ESP of +2.98% and a Zacks Rank #3 at present.

Pure Storage’s shares have gained 44.6% year to date. PSTG is set to report third-quarter fiscal 2025 results on Dec. 03.

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