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Agilent (A) Up 9.6% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?
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It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Agilent Technologies (A - Free Report) . Shares have added about 9.6% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Agilent due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
Agilent Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Pharma and China Strength
Agilent Technologies reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 non-GAAP earnings of $1.62 per share, up 18% year over year and beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9.46%.
Revenues of $1.88 billion rose 8.1% on a reported basis and 7.3% on a core basis, surpassing the consensus mark by 2.08%.
Strength reflected broad demand across pharma and China, while the Advanced Therapeutics Division grew nearly 30%. Instrument book-to-bill remained above 1.0 for the 10th consecutive quarter, underscoring healthy equipment demand.
A's Q3 Segment Performance
Life Sciences and Diagnostics Markets Group revenues were $746 million, up 11% on a reported basis and 10% on a core basis. The segment's operating margin expanded to 23.5% from 17.6% a year ago, aided by strong liquid chromatography demand. Biocare contributed $10 million after the acquisition closed in late June.
Agilent CrossLab Group revenues increased 6% to $786 million on a reported basis and 5% on a core basis. Its operating margin rose 100 basis points to 34.3%.
Applied Markets Group revenues climbed 7% to $346 million on both reported and core bases, while operating margin increased 310 basis points to 24.9%. CrossLab services grew at a mid-single-digit rate, while consumables increased at a high-single-digit pace across all regions.
Agilent's End-Market Momentum
Pharmaceutical and biotechnology revenues were $707 million on a GAAP basis. GLP-1-related revenues increased more than 70%, while pharma growth excluding the CDMO business was 9%.
Diagnostics and clinical core revenues rose 6%, supported by mid-teens companion diagnostics growth, high-single-digit genomics growth and double-digit pathology orders.
Chemicals and advanced materials core revenues grew 7%, driven by semiconductor demand, while environmental and forensics rose 5%. Food was flat, and academia and government declined 3%. New-product traction was also notable, with the 9500 Triple Quad ICP-MS order funnel exceeding $60 million and initial orders for the new flagship GC systems running at more than twice expectations.
A's Margin and Expense Trends
Non-GAAP gross margin expanded to 56.4% from 53.1% a year earlier. The quarter included about 160 basis points of benefit from tariff refunds. Excluding that benefit, gross margin was 54.9%, up 180 basis points year over year.
Research and development (R&D) expenses on a non-GAAP basis were $118 million, up 7.3% from the prior-year quarter. Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses on a non-GAAP basis rose to $410 million, marking a 9.3% increase from the prior-year quarter.
Non-GAAP operating margin improved 320 basis points to 28.3%, including about 110 basis points from tariff refunds. Excluding refunds, operating margin was 27.2%, up 210 basis points.
Agilent's Cash Flow and Balance Sheet
Cash and cash equivalents were $1.76 billion as of July 31, 2026, compared with $1.79 billion as of Oct. 31, 2025.
Long-term debt increased to $3.65 billion from $3.05 billion.
Operating cash flow was $519 million in the quarter. Free cash flow was $439 million, representing a 96% conversion of non-GAAP net income.
In the third quarter of fiscal 2026, Agilent repurchased $78 million of shares and paid $72 million in dividends.
A's Q4 and Fiscal 2026 Outlook
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, Agilent expects revenues of $1.98-$2.00 billion, implying reported growth of 6.4-7.4% and core growth of 5.2-6.2%. Non-GAAP earnings are projected to be in the range of $1.71-$1.74 per share. The outlook includes about $23 million of Biocare revenues and no future benefit from potential tariff refunds.
For fiscal 2026, revenues are now projected to be between $7.49 and $7.51 billion, representing reported growth of 7.8-8.1% and core growth of 5.8-6.0%. Non-GAAP earnings are expected to be $6.18-$6.21 per share, up 15 cents at the midpoint from the prior guide. Non-GAAP operating margin expansion is expected to exceed 130 basis points, including about 30 basis points from third-quarter tariff refunds. Operating cash flow is expected to be $1.6-$1.7 billion, with capital expenditures of about $450 million.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
It turns out, fresh estimates have trended upward during the past month.
VGM Scores
Currently, Agilent has a average Growth Score of C, though it is lagging a bit on the Momentum Score front with a D. Following the exact same course, the stock has a score of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Notably, Agilent has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
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Agilent (A) Up 9.6% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?
It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Agilent Technologies (A - Free Report) . Shares have added about 9.6% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Agilent due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
Agilent Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Pharma and China Strength
Agilent Technologies reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 non-GAAP earnings of $1.62 per share, up 18% year over year and beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9.46%.
Revenues of $1.88 billion rose 8.1% on a reported basis and 7.3% on a core basis, surpassing the consensus mark by 2.08%.
Strength reflected broad demand across pharma and China, while the Advanced Therapeutics Division grew nearly 30%. Instrument book-to-bill remained above 1.0 for the 10th consecutive quarter, underscoring healthy equipment demand.
A's Q3 Segment Performance
Life Sciences and Diagnostics Markets Group revenues were $746 million, up 11% on a reported basis and 10% on a core basis. The segment's operating margin expanded to 23.5% from 17.6% a year ago, aided by strong liquid chromatography demand. Biocare contributed $10 million after the acquisition closed in late June.
Agilent CrossLab Group revenues increased 6% to $786 million on a reported basis and 5% on a core basis. Its operating margin rose 100 basis points to 34.3%.
Applied Markets Group revenues climbed 7% to $346 million on both reported and core bases, while operating margin increased 310 basis points to 24.9%. CrossLab services grew at a mid-single-digit rate, while consumables increased at a high-single-digit pace across all regions.
Agilent's End-Market Momentum
Pharmaceutical and biotechnology revenues were $707 million on a GAAP basis. GLP-1-related revenues increased more than 70%, while pharma growth excluding the CDMO business was 9%.
Diagnostics and clinical core revenues rose 6%, supported by mid-teens companion diagnostics growth, high-single-digit genomics growth and double-digit pathology orders.
Chemicals and advanced materials core revenues grew 7%, driven by semiconductor demand, while environmental and forensics rose 5%. Food was flat, and academia and government declined 3%. New-product traction was also notable, with the 9500 Triple Quad ICP-MS order funnel exceeding $60 million and initial orders for the new flagship GC systems running at more than twice expectations.
A's Margin and Expense Trends
Non-GAAP gross margin expanded to 56.4% from 53.1% a year earlier. The quarter included about 160 basis points of benefit from tariff refunds. Excluding that benefit, gross margin was 54.9%, up 180 basis points year over year.
Research and development (R&D) expenses on a non-GAAP basis were $118 million, up 7.3% from the prior-year quarter. Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses on a non-GAAP basis rose to $410 million, marking a 9.3% increase from the prior-year quarter.
Non-GAAP operating margin improved 320 basis points to 28.3%, including about 110 basis points from tariff refunds. Excluding refunds, operating margin was 27.2%, up 210 basis points.
Agilent's Cash Flow and Balance Sheet
Cash and cash equivalents were $1.76 billion as of July 31, 2026, compared with $1.79 billion as of Oct. 31, 2025.
Long-term debt increased to $3.65 billion from $3.05 billion.
Operating cash flow was $519 million in the quarter. Free cash flow was $439 million, representing a 96% conversion of non-GAAP net income.
In the third quarter of fiscal 2026, Agilent repurchased $78 million of shares and paid $72 million in dividends.
A's Q4 and Fiscal 2026 Outlook
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, Agilent expects revenues of $1.98-$2.00 billion, implying reported growth of 6.4-7.4% and core growth of 5.2-6.2%. Non-GAAP earnings are projected to be in the range of $1.71-$1.74 per share. The outlook includes about $23 million of Biocare revenues and no future benefit from potential tariff refunds.
For fiscal 2026, revenues are now projected to be between $7.49 and $7.51 billion, representing reported growth of 7.8-8.1% and core growth of 5.8-6.0%. Non-GAAP earnings are expected to be $6.18-$6.21 per share, up 15 cents at the midpoint from the prior guide. Non-GAAP operating margin expansion is expected to exceed 130 basis points, including about 30 basis points from third-quarter tariff refunds. Operating cash flow is expected to be $1.6-$1.7 billion, with capital expenditures of about $450 million.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
It turns out, fresh estimates have trended upward during the past month.
VGM Scores
Currently, Agilent has a average Growth Score of C, though it is lagging a bit on the Momentum Score front with a D. Following the exact same course, the stock has a score of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Notably, Agilent has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.