Agilent Technologies (NYSE: A) is an analytical instrumentation company that designs, manufactures, and sells chemical analysis and bioanalytical measurement tools used across scientific research, pharmaceutical development, diagnostics, food safety, and environmental testing. Revenue comes from three segments: Life Sciences and Diagnostics Markets (instruments, reagents, and software for pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, academic, and clinical customers), Applied Markets (instruments and solutions for food, environmental, chemical, and energy industries), and Agilent CrossLab (services, consumables, and enterprise laboratory management). Agilent competes directly against Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waters Corporation, Bruker, Danaher's AB Sciex and Leica Biosystems divisions, Shimadzu Corporation, and Roche Ventana Medical Systems. The company reported operating income of $946 million on an operating margin of 32.5% for fiscal year ending October 31, 2025, down from a 33.7% operating margin in FY2024. Agilent was founded in 1999 as a spin-off from Hewlett-Packard and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.
- Revenue model
- Agilent generates revenue through instrument sales (gas chromatographs, liquid chromatographs, mass spectrometers, pathology staining systems, cell analysis tools), software and informatics licensing, and the Agilent CrossLab segment which provides recurring consumables, maintenance contracts, repair services, laboratory management, and asset procurement services. The CrossLab model captures recurring revenue from installed instrument bases.
- Products and services
- Gas chromatographs (laboratory and portable), gas chromatography mass spectrometry systems (single quadrupole, triple quadrupole, quadrupole time-of-flight), liquid chromatography and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry systems, cell analysis instruments, nucleic acid solutions, pathology staining systems (CoverStainer, Artisan, Dako Omnis, Autostainer), immunohistochemistry and fluorescence in situ hybridization solutions, companion diagnostic tests, bulk antibodies and assay development services, flow cytometry reagents, software and informatics products, and CrossLab enterprise laboratory management services including instrument services, lab supply management, procurement, and scientific services.
- Customers and end markets
- Pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies (small molecule drug, biologics, monoclonal antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, cell and gene therapy, vaccine manufacturers), academic and government research institutions, hospital and clinical diagnostic laboratories, food producers and food safety testing labs, environmental testing labs (including PFAS analysis), chemical and advanced materials companies, and energy sector customers. Pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical customers represent a key revenue driver; capital spending constraints in this segment and reductions in U.S. federal government funding were cited as demand headwinds in FY2024 and FY2025.
- Value-chain role
- Agilent sits at the instrumentation and analytical tools layer of the scientific measurement value chain, supplying both capital equipment and the recurring consumables, reagents, and services that operate alongside that equipment. The CrossLab segment positions Agilent as an outsourced laboratory operations partner for customers consolidating suppliers.
- Geographic exposure
- Agilent operates globally with revenues, costs, and monetary assets exposed to foreign currency movements across its international operations, as disclosed in the FY2025 10-K. Specific regional revenue breakdowns are not detailed in the available filing excerpts.
- Competitors
- Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., Waters Corporation, Bruker, Inc., AB Sciex (division of Danaher Corporation), Leica Biosystems, Inc. (division of Danaher Corporation), Shimadzu Corporation, Roche Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., Twist Bioscience Corporation, Avecia (division of Nitto Denko)
