Price movement over the last 24 hours
Agilent Technologies Inc vs Hormel Foods Corp — how do they compare? Agilent Technologies Inc trades at $129.15 (market cap $37.04B), while Hormel Foods Corp trades at $24.64 (market cap $13.59B). The key difference: Agilent Technologies Inc is far larger — about 2.7× Hormel Foods Corp's market cap, and Hormel Foods Corp pays the higher dividend (4.74%). Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| A | HRL | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $37.04B | $13.59B |
Sector | Health | Consumer Staples |
52-Week High | $157.20 | $31.54 |
52-Week Low | $110.24 | $19.74 |
Enterprise Value | $38.59B | $15.59B |
Dividend Yield | 0.78% | 4.74% |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Agilent Technologies (A) trades at $131.14, up 0.34% on the day, with a bearish technical signal but strong analyst support. The stock shows solid profitability with a net margin of 19.55% and ROE of 21.33%, supported by recent earnings beats. Recent acquisitions like Biocare Medical highlight growth initiatives, while cash flow trends remain positive. Valuation ratios such as P/E of 26.22 are elevated but align with quality growth expectations.
The outlook is positive given analyst consensus with a $154.90 price target and 77.5% buy ratings. Risks include execution of acquisitions and macroeconomic pressures on life sciences spending. The stock offers growth potential from AI-driven product launches, though technical resistance near $132 may cap near-term gains.
Hormel Foods (HRL) trades at $24.70, down 1.2% on the day, with a mixed technical outlook showing bullish overall signals but bearish moving averages. The stock has consistently beaten earnings estimates in recent quarters, though net income margin has compressed to 3.82%. Recent corporate actions include steady $0.29 dividends, while the company sold its Brazilian Ceratti operations to sharpen international focus. Analyst consensus price target is $25.00, slightly above current levels.
HRL offers a stable dividend profile as a Dividend King but faces margin pressure and modest growth. Near-term upside appears limited given current valuation and mixed analyst ratings. Key risks include input cost inflation and competitive pressures in the consumer staples sector. The stock presents a defensive income opportunity rather than significant capital appreciation potential in the current environment.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Originally spun out of Hewlett-Packard in 1999, Agilent has evolved into a leading life sciences and diagnostics firm. Today, Agilent's measurement technologies serve a broad base of customers with its three operating segments: life science and applied tools (45% of fiscal 2021 sales), cross lab (35% of sales consisting of consumables and services related to its life science and applied tools), and diagnostics and genomics (20%). Over half of its sales are generated from the biopharmaceutical, chemical, and energy end markets, but it also supports clinical lab, environmental, forensics, food, academic, and government-related organizations. The company is geographically diverse, with operations in the U.S. (34%) and China (20%) representing the largest country concentrations.
Read more on A →Hormel Foods is a protein-focused branded food company. Its brands include its namesake Hormel, Spam, Jennie-O, Dinty Moore, Applegate, Wholly Guacamole, and Skippy. The vast majority of the company's revenue is U.S.-based: 64% U.S. retail, 28% U.S. food service, and 8% international. By product type, in fiscal 2021, 23% of revenue was shelf-stable foods, 18% was poultry (branded and commodity), 55% was other perishable food, and 3% was other, primarily nutritional products. The company holds the number-one market position in shelf-stable meat, shelf-stable ready meals, pepperoni, natural/organic deli meat, and guacamole and the number-two position in turkey, bacon, chilled ready meals, and peanut butter.
Read more on HRL →