Agilent Sales Beat Forecasts; Company to Cut 2,500 Jobs

Agilent Technologies Inc. shares rose during extended trading hours after the maker of testing and measurement equipment said Monday that sales topped forecasts and that it would eliminate 2,500 jobs.

The company reported a fourth-quarter loss partly because of severance costs.

The net loss was $236 million, or 51 cents a share, in the quarter ended Oct. 31, compared with net income of $197 million, or 43 cents, a year earlier, Agilent said.

Sales rose 8.1%, the first year-over-year increase in six quarters, to $1.74 billion from $1.61 billion.

Palo Alto-based Agilent has been paring expenses over the last year as sales tumbled as a result of slack demand for gear used to test telecommunications equipment.

The company, which was spun off from Hewlett-Packard Co. in 2000, is trimming 2,500 positions in addition to the 8,000 announced last year, spokeswoman Michele Drake said.

Agilent said in August that it planned to eliminate more jobs to save $50 million per quarter.

Shares of Agilent, which have fallen 52% this year, rose 8.5% to $14.75 in extended trading Monday.

The shares fell 20 cents to $13.60 on the New York Stock Exchange before the announcement.