PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug. 17 -- Agilent Technologies Inc. seeks to raise $100 million in an initial public offering. Agilent, a manufacturer of test equipment and semiconductor and optical components, is a subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard Co. According to the company's IPO filing, Hewlett-Packard plans to complete its divestiture of Agilent by the middle of next year through distribution of all Agilent common shares owned by Hewlett-Packard to the holders of Hewlett-Packard's common stock. Agilent reports that substantially all of those shares would be eligible for immediate resale in the public market. Hewlett-Packard is not obligated to complete the distribution, however; it may not do so by the anticipated time, or at all, Agilent said.
One of Agilent's largest customers, Hewlett-Packard has already received a letter from the Internal Revenue Service confirming that the distribution will be tax-free to Hewlett-Packard and its common stock holders for federal income tax purposes. Agilent, whose other customers include AT&T Corp. and Lockheed Corp., said it would turn over the net proceeds from the IPO to Hewlett-Packard as a dividend to be declared prior to the offering.