Agilent Technologies Key Stats
- FoundedNovember 1999
- HeadquartersSanta Clara, California
- Stock ExchangeNYSE: A
- Revenue (FY2024)$6.51 billion
- Employees~18,000
Agilent Technologies, Inc. is a life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It was spun off from Hewlett-Packard in November 1999 as the latter separated its test and measurement, semiconductor, and scientific instrument businesses. Today Agilent concentrates entirely on laboratory instruments, consumables, software, and services for customers in pharmaceutical, food, environmental, clinical, forensics, chemical, and research markets worldwide. It operates in more than 100 countries and lists on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker A.
The company’s product lines span gas and liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, spectroscopy, genomics, cell analysis, pathology reagents, and laboratory software — essentially the full analytical workflow a research or quality-control laboratory encounters from sample preparation through data reporting. Agilent serves this market through three reported business groups: Life Sciences and Applied Markets, Diagnostics and Genomics, and the Agilent CrossLab Group, which provides services, consumables, and lab management to customers using instruments from multiple vendors.
Revenue reached $6.51 billion in fiscal year 2024 (ending October 31, 2024), a modest decline from the prior year as pharmaceutical and biotech customers worked through post-pandemic inventory buildup. The company’s fiscal 2025 results recovered to $6.95 billion. With roughly 18,000 employees and decades of instrument expertise inherited from its HP origins, Agilent ranks among the largest publicly traded laboratory instrument companies globally, alongside Thermo Fisher Scientific and Danaher.
Agilent Technologies History
Agilent’s entire technical and cultural heritage runs through Hewlett-Packard, the company William Hewlett and David Packard founded in a Palo Alto garage in 1939. HP’s scientific instrument division — producing oscilloscopes, signal analyzers, and eventually chemical analysis equipment such as gas chromatographs and liquid chromatography systems — grew for six decades into one of the most respected measurement businesses in the world. By the late 1990s, HP’s board concluded that the instrument and semiconductor-equipment businesses had little strategic synergy with the personal computer and printer operations that HP had become best known for.
On November 18, 1999, Agilent Technologies begins trading on the New York Stock Exchange following completion of what was then the largest initial public offering in the history of Silicon Valley. HP distributed 380 million Agilent shares to existing shareholders and sold an additional stake in the IPO. The new company inherits HP’s test and measurement instruments, semiconductor products, chemical analysis equipment, and healthcare products — a sprawling portfolio with roughly 47,000 employees and $8 billion in revenue at the time of separation. Edward Barnholt, a 30-year HP veteran, serves as the first CEO.
The collapse of the dot-com and telecom equipment bubbles hits Agilent hard in 2001 and 2002, as demand for semiconductor test equipment and electronic measurement instruments drops sharply. The company executes multiple rounds of layoffs, reducing its workforce from about 47,000 to under 30,000 employees over two years. Bill Sullivan, who had joined HP in 1976, becomes president and CEO in March 2005, succeeding Barnholt. Sullivan begins the process of narrowing Agilent’s focus toward life sciences and chemical analysis markets with higher recurring revenue characteristics.
Agilent divests its semiconductor test business, spinning it off as Verigy on the Nasdaq in mid-2006. The company also sells its semiconductor products group in 2005. These moves free capital and management attention for the life sciences and chemical analysis segments. In 2010, Agilent completes the acquisition of Varian, Inc. — then the largest deal in the company’s history — paying approximately $1.5 billion for Varian’s analytical instruments business. The deal adds nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) systems to Agilent’s portfolio, considerably broadening its reach in chemical and environmental testing.
In June 2012, Agilent completes the purchase of Dako, a Danish cancer diagnostics company, for $2.2 billion — at that point the largest acquisition in the company’s history. Dako supplies antibodies, reagents, instruments, and software used in pathology laboratories for immunohistochemistry (IHC), a technique central to diagnosing cancer by identifying proteins in tissue samples. The acquisition substantially expands Agilent’s presence in clinical diagnostics and adds approximately 1,000 Dako employees. The Dako brand is retained and remains part of Agilent’s portfolio today.
On September 19, 2013, Agilent announces it will separate its electronic measurement business — oscilloscopes, signal analyzers, network analyzers, and related instruments — into a standalone publicly traded company. The spinoff is completed on November 1, 2014, with Keysight Technologies beginning to trade on the NYSE. After the separation, Agilent is a focused life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets company with a cleaner portfolio and higher recurring revenue from consumables and services. Mike McMullen, who had spent 30 years with HP and Agilent, is named CEO-elect in September 2014, succeeding Sullivan in March 2015.
Under McMullen, Agilent pursues a disciplined acquisition strategy focused on adding consumables, software, and cell analysis capabilities that generate recurring revenue. Seahorse Bioscience (2015) adds cellular metabolism analysis tools; ACEA Biosciences ($250 million, September 2018) brings impedance-based cell analysis platforms; Advanced Analytical Technologies ($250 million, 2018) contributes capillary electrophoresis instruments for genomics. The largest acquisition of this era is BioTek Instruments in August 2019 for $1.165 billion — a maker of microplate readers, washers, and automated microscopy systems used in drug discovery and genomics research. The CrossLab Group is formalized as a distinct business segment during this period, bundling services and third-party consumables into enterprise laboratory management contracts.
Agilent’s COVID-19 exposure is limited relative to medical device or diagnostics companies, as its instruments are used primarily in research and quality-control workflows that continued operating. Revenue rises from $5.34 billion in fiscal 2020 to $6.32 billion in fiscal 2021 and $6.85 billion in fiscal 2022, driven by strong pharmaceutical and biotech spending on drug development, including demand related to vaccine and therapeutic research. The period represents the strongest sustained organic growth in the company’s post-HP history.
Revenue flattens in fiscal 2023 ($6.83 billion) and declines to $6.51 billion in fiscal 2024 as pharmaceutical and biotech customers reduce capital spending after two years of elevated procurement. In February 2024, Agilent announces that McMullen will retire, naming Padraig McDonnell — president of the CrossLab Group and chief commercial officer — as CEO-elect. McDonnell formally takes the role on May 1, 2024. He joined HP in 1998, spent years managing Agilent’s EMEA and India commercial operations, and later led the Chemistries and Supplies Division. Revenue recovers to $6.95 billion in fiscal 2025 as the pharmaceutical market restabilizes.
Agilent Technologies Leadership
Edward (Ned) Barnholt — Founding CEO (1999–2005)
Barnholt spent more than 30 years at Hewlett-Packard before leading Agilent through its 1999 IPO and the difficult years of the telecom and dot-com bust. He oversaw the workforce restructuring that cut headcount from 47,000 to under 30,000 and the early divestiture of non-core businesses. After retiring from Agilent, Barnholt served on the boards of several major technology companies.
William (Bill) Sullivan — CEO (2005–2015)
Sullivan joined Hewlett-Packard in 1976 and served as Agilent’s CEO for a decade. He is credited with steering the company from a diversified technology conglomerate toward the focused life sciences and applied markets business it is today — executing the Varian acquisition, the Dako acquisition, and ultimately the Keysight Technologies spinoff in 2014. Sullivan retired as CEO in March 2015 after completing the Keysight separation.
Mike McMullen — CEO (2015–2024)
McMullen joined HP in 1984 as a financial analyst and rose through instrument, sales, and regional leadership positions, including five years in Japan. As president of Agilent’s Chemical Analysis Group from 2009, he built the services business that later became CrossLab and championed the BioTek and ACEA acquisitions. As CEO, he oversaw the company’s record revenue growth of fiscal 2021 and 2022. He retired in October 2024 after 40 years with the combined HP/Agilent enterprise.
Padraig McDonnell — CEO (2024–present)
McDonnell began his career at HP in 1998 and spent years leading Agilent’s sales and service operations in EMEA and India. He later ran the Chemistries and Supplies Division before becoming president of the CrossLab Group and the company’s chief commercial officer. He assumed the CEO role on May 1, 2024, focusing on restoring growth momentum after the post-pandemic inventory correction and on expanding Agilent’s services and software revenue mix.
Agilent Technologies Competitors
Agilent competes across several overlapping markets — analytical instruments, life science research tools, clinical diagnostics reagents, and laboratory services — and the competitive landscape differs meaningfully by segment. In chromatography and mass spectrometry, Waters Corporation is its closest direct rival; in life sciences instruments broadly, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Danaher’s instrument businesses (Cytiva, SCIEX) are the primary competitors at scale. Bruker and Shimadzu compete in specific spectroscopy and chromatography categories.
| Company | Country | Primary Overlap | Annual Revenue (approx.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thermo Fisher Scientific | USA | Instruments, reagents, life science tools | ~$42.9B (2024) |
| Danaher Corporation | USA | Life sciences, diagnostics, water quality | ~$23.9B (2024) |
| Waters Corporation | USA | Liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry | ~$3.0B (2024) |
| Bruker Corporation | USA | Mass spectrometry, NMR, spectroscopy | ~$2.8B (2024) |
| Revvity (formerly PerkinElmer) | USA | Life sciences, diagnostics, imaging | ~$2.8B (2024) |
| Bio-Rad Laboratories | USA | Life science research, clinical diagnostics | ~$2.6B (2024) |
| Shimadzu Corporation | Japan | Chromatography, spectroscopy, GC/MS | ~$4.2B (FY2024) |
| Sartorius AG | Germany | Biopharma lab instruments and supplies | ~$3.4B (2024) |
| Hologic | USA | Molecular diagnostics, genomics | ~$3.8B (FY2024) |
| IDEXX Laboratories | USA | Veterinary diagnostics, clinical testing | ~$3.9B (2024) |
Agilent Technologies Acquisitions
Agilent’s approach to acquisitions has shifted considerably across its 25-year history. In the first decade after the HP spinoff, the company made relatively few deals, instead divesting businesses (semiconductor test in 2006, semiconductor products in 2005) to narrow its focus. The acquisition pace accelerated once Agilent committed fully to life sciences and chemical analysis, with three deals standing out as most consequential.
The first was Varian, Inc. in 2010, for approximately $1.5 billion. Varian’s analytical instruments division brought a strong portfolio of GC/MS, ICP-MS, and NMR systems that significantly broadened Agilent’s reach in chemical, environmental, and materials testing. The deal roughly doubled Agilent’s presence in several laboratory instrument categories.
The second was Dako in 2012 for $2.2 billion — at the time the largest acquisition in Agilent’s history. Dako was a Danish company supplying antibodies, reagents, and instruments for cancer diagnostics in pathology laboratories, specifically for immunohistochemistry testing. The deal gave Agilent a recurring-revenue business in clinical diagnostics and a recognized brand — Agilent Dako — that still operates as a distinct product line.
The third major transaction was BioTek Instruments in August 2019 for $1.165 billion. BioTek designed and manufactured microplate readers, automated washers, and imaging systems widely used in pharmaceutical drug discovery and genomics research. The acquisition was the most expensive in Agilent’s history to that point and substantially strengthened its cell analysis capabilities.
Between 2017 and 2019, Agilent also made a series of smaller bolt-on purchases: ACEA Biosciences ($250 million, 2018) for impedance-based cell analysis; Advanced Analytical Technologies ($250 million, 2018) for capillary electrophoresis systems; Seahorse Bioscience (2015) for metabolic flux analysis; and Halo Genomics for next-generation sequencing technology. Together these acquisitions shifted the company’s revenue mix toward a higher proportion of recurring consumables and services income.
Agilent Technologies Revenue
Agilent’s fiscal year ends October 31. Revenue stood at $4.04 billion in fiscal 2015, the first full year after the Keysight Technologies spinoff made Agilent a pure-play life sciences and applied markets company. Growth was modest through fiscal 2019 ($5.16 billion), as the company invested in integration and built its services and consumables base. A step-change occurred in fiscal 2021 and 2022, when pharmaceutical and biotech spending surged, pushing revenue to $6.32 billion and $6.85 billion respectively. Fiscal 2023 and 2024 saw slight declines as those customers worked through inventory, before the company returned to growth in fiscal 2025 at $6.95 billion.
Agilent Technologies Market Cap
Agilent’s market capitalisation was around $13–14 billion in late 2015 and 2016, reflecting the relatively modest scale of the company after the Keysight spinoff removed the measurement instruments business. The share price re-rated substantially from 2017 through 2021 as investors recognized the margin expansion and recurring revenue story unfolding in the CrossLab services business, and as the pharmaceutical sector entered a prolonged capital investment cycle. Market cap reached approximately $47–52 billion at its peak in late 2021. It retreated through 2023 and 2024 in line with the broader correction in life science tools stocks, sitting at roughly $34–36 billion in early 2026.
FAQs
What does Agilent Technologies do?
Agilent makes laboratory instruments, consumables, and software for customers in pharmaceutical, food, environmental, clinical diagnostics, forensics, chemical, and research sectors. Its products include chromatography systems, mass spectrometers, genomics tools, cancer diagnostics reagents, cell analysis instruments, and lab management software and services.
What company did Agilent spin off from?
Agilent was spun off from Hewlett-Packard in November 1999, in what was then the largest IPO in Silicon Valley history. It inherited HP’s scientific instrument, test and measurement, and semiconductor-related equipment businesses. HP’s printer and personal computer operations remained with the parent company.
What is Keysight Technologies and how does it relate to Agilent?
Keysight Technologies is Agilent’s own spinoff — the electronic measurement instruments division that Agilent separated in November 2014. After the spinoff, Agilent focused on life sciences and chemical analysis, while Keysight focuses on electronic testing instruments for semiconductors, communications, and aerospace. Both companies trace their lineage directly to Hewlett-Packard.
What is the Agilent CrossLab Group?
CrossLab is Agilent’s services and consumables business, providing instrument support, laboratory management consulting, chemicals and supplies, and software to laboratory customers — including users of instruments made by other companies. It generates more predictable recurring revenue than instrument hardware sales and has grown to represent a significant share of Agilent’s total revenue.
What are Agilent’s main brands?
The principal brands are Agilent CrossLab (services and consumables), Agilent Dako (cancer diagnostics reagents and pathology systems), Agilent InfinityLab (liquid chromatography instruments and supplies), and Agilent OpenLab (laboratory software for data management and compliance). The Agilent name itself is the umbrella brand across all product lines.
*Information from Forbes.com, Wikipedia.org, and Agilent.com.
**Video published on YouTube by “Agilent Technologies“.
