Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.20 EPS

Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS) announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.20), Zacks reports. Keysight Technologies had a return on equity of 19.30% and a net margin of 15.71%.

Keysight Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KEYS traded up $1.47 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $245.01. 2,683,238 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,131,085. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 2.35. The company has a market cap of $42.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $216.41 and a 200 day moving average of $190.22. Keysight Technologies has a one year low of $121.43 and a one year high of $248.00.

Insider Activity at Keysight Technologies

In related news, SVP Jeffrey K. Li sold 3,934 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.84, for a total transaction of $790,104.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 36,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,370,627.16. This represents a 9.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Ingrid A. Estrada sold 4,827 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.42, for a total transaction of $948,119.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 110,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,621,717.18. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 78,784 shares of company stock valued at $15,841,737 over the last quarter. 0.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Keysight Technologies

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Keysight Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in Keysight Technologies in the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Keysight Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $57,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Keysight Technologies by 66.5% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 393 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Keysight Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $71,000. Institutional investors own 84.58% of the company’s stock.

Keysight Technologies declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, November 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the scientific and technical instruments company to repurchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on KEYS. Citigroup boosted their target price on Keysight Technologies from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered Keysight Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. UBS Group set a $230.00 price objective on Keysight Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $243.00 price target on shares of Keysight Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Keysight Technologies in a report on Monday, December 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Keysight Technologies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.09.

About Keysight Technologies

Keysight Technologies is a global provider of electronic design, test, measurement and optimization solutions for communications, electronics and related industries. The company was formed as a corporate spin-off from Agilent Technologies in 2014; its origins trace back to the electronic measurement business that was part of Hewlett?Packard before Agilent. Keysight develops hardware and software used throughout the product development lifecycle, from design and simulation to prototype validation and manufacturing test.

Keysight’s product portfolio includes electronic test and measurement instruments such as oscilloscopes, network and spectrum analyzers, signal generators, vector network analyzers and modular PXI-based systems, together with software platforms for simulation, automated test and data analysis.