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RETIREMENT PLANS AND POST RETIREMENT PENSION PLANS

12 Months Ended

Oct. 31, 2020

Defined Benefit Plans and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans Disclosures [Abstract]

RETIREMENT PLANS AND POST RETIREMENT PENSION PLANS

General. Substantially all of our employees are covered under various defined benefit and/or defined contribution retirement plans. Additionally, we sponsor post-retirement health care benefits for our eligible U.S. employees.

Agilent provides defined benefits to U.S. employees who meet eligibility criteria under the Agilent Technologies, Inc. Retirement Plan (the "RP").

For eligible service through October 31, 1993, the benefit payable under the Agilent Retirement Plan is reduced by any amounts due to the eligible employee under the Agilent defined contribution Deferred Profit-Sharing Plan (the "DPSP"), which was closed to new participants as of November 1993.

As of October 31, 2020 and 2019, the fair value of plan assets of the DPSP was $123 million and $132 million, respectively. Note that the projected benefit obligation for the DPSP equals the fair value of plan assets.

Effective November 1, 2014, Agilent’s U.S. defined benefit retirement plan was closed to new entrants including new employees, new transfers to the U.S. payroll and rehires. As of April 30, 2016, benefits under the RP were frozen. Any pension benefit earned in the U.S. Plans through April 30, 2016 remained fully vested, and there are no additional benefit accruals after April 30, 2016.

Agilent also maintains a Supplemental Benefits Retirement Plan ("SBRP") in the U.S., which is a supplemental unfunded non-qualified defined benefit plan to provide benefits that would be provided under the RP but for limitations imposed by the Internal Revenue Code. The RP and the SBRP comprise the "U.S. Plans" in the tables below.

Eligible employees outside the U.S. generally receive retirement benefits under various retirement plans based upon factors such as years of service and/or employee compensation levels. Eligibility is generally determined in accordance with local statutory requirements.

Post-Retirement Medical Benefit Plans. In addition to receiving retirement benefits, Agilent U.S. employees who meet eligibility requirements as of their termination date may participate in the Agilent Technologies, Inc. Health Plan for Retirees.

–Eligible retirees who were less than age 50 as of January 1, 2005 and who retire after age 55 with 15 or more years of service are eligible for a fixed amount which can be utilized to pay for either sponsored plans and/or individual Medicare plans.

–Effective January 1, 2012, employees who were at least age 50 as of January 1, 2005 and who retire after age 55 with 15 or more years of service are eligible for fixed dollar subsidies and stipends. Grandfathered retirees receive a fixed monthly subsidy toward pre-65 premium costs (subsidy capped at 2011 levels) and a fixed monthly stipend post-65. The subsidy amounts will not increase.

–Any new employee hired on or after November 1, 2014, will not be eligible to participate in the retiree medical plans upon retiring.

–As of April 30, 2016, benefits under this plan were changed for Active employees who have not met the eligibility requirement - 55 years old with at least 15 years of Agilent service, as of April 30, 2016 - for the Retiree Medical Account (RMA) under the U.S. Post Retirement Benefit Plan. These employees will only be eligible for 50 percent of the current RMA reimbursement amount upon retirement.

401(k) Defined Contribution Plan. Eligible Agilent U.S. employees may participate in the Agilent Technologies, Inc. 401(k) Plan. We match contributions to employees up to a maximum of 6 percent of an employee's annual eligible compensation. Effective May 1, 2016 until April 30, 2022, we will provide an additional transitional company contribution for certain eligible employees equal to 3 percent, 4 percent or 5 percent of an employee's annual eligible compensation due to the RP benefits being frozen. The maximum contribution to the 401(k) Plan is 50 percent of an employee's annual eligible compensation, subject to regulatory limitations. The 401(k) Plan employer expense included in income from operations was $41 million in 2020, $39 million in 2019 and $37 million in 2018.

Components of Net periodic cost. The service cost component is recorded in cost of sales and operating expenses in the consolidated statement of operations. All other cost components are recorded in other income (expense), net in the consolidated statement of operations. The company uses alternate methods of amortization as allowed by the authoritative guidance which amortizes the actuarial gains and losses on a consistent basis for the years presented. For U.S. Plans, gains and losses are amortized over the average future lifetime of participants using the corridor method. For most Non-U.S. Plans and U.S. Post-Retirement Benefit Plans, gains and losses are amortized using a separate layer for each year's gains and losses.

For the years ended October 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, components of net periodic benefit cost and other amounts recognized in other comprehensive income were comprised of:


	Pensions												U.S. Post-Retirement Benefit Plans
	U.S. Plans						Non-U.S. Plans

	2020		2019		2018		2020		2019		2018		2020		2019		2018
	(in millions)
Net periodic benefit cost (benefit)
Service cost — benefits earned during the period	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	24	$	20	$	20	$	1	$	—	$	1
Interest cost on benefit obligation	15		18		16		8		14		13		3		4		3
Expected return on plan assets	(28)		(27)		(28)		(47)		(43)		(46)		(7)		(7)		(7)
Amortization of net actuarial loss	3		1		1		49		34		29		4		4		8
Amortization of prior service benefit	—		—		—		—		—		—		(7)		(8)		(8)
Total periodic benefit cost (benefit)	$	(10)	$	(8)	$	(11)	$	34	$	25	$	16	$	(6)	$	(7)	$	(3)
Settlement (gain) loss	$	4	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	(5)	$	—	$	—	$	—
Other changes in plan assets and benefit obligations recognized in other comprehensive (income) loss
Net actuarial (gain) loss	$	26	$	51	$	2	$	20	$	104	$	49	$	5	$	5	$	(2)
Amortization of net actuarial loss	(3)		(1)		(1)		(49)		(34)		(29)		(4)		(4)		(8)

Amortization of prior service benefit	—		—		—		—		—		—		7		8		8
Loss due to settlement	(4)		—		—		—		—		—		—		—		—
Foreign currency	—		—		—		10		(3)		1		—		—		—
Total recognized in other comprehensive (income) loss	$	19	$	50	$	1	$	(19)	$	67	$	21	$	8	$	9	$	(2)
Total recognized in net periodic benefit cost (benefit) and other comprehensive (income) loss	$	13	$	42	$	(10)	$	15	$	92	$	32	$	2	$	2	$	(5)

Funded Status. As of October 31, 2020 and 2019, the funded status of the defined benefit and post-retirement benefit plans was:


	U.S. Defined Benefit Plans				Non-U.S. Defined Benefit Plans				U.S. Post-Retirement Benefit Plans
	2020		2019		2020		2019		2020		2019
	(in millions)
Change in fair value of plan assets:
Fair value — beginning of year	$	432	$	401	$	911	$	825	$	95	$	90
Actual return on plan assets	30		50		(2)		85		6		11
Employer contributions	—		—		32		21		—		—
Participants' contributions	—		—		1		1		—		—
Benefits paid	(8)		(19)		(31)		(29)		(8)		(6)
Settlements	(15)		—		—		—		—		—
Currency impact	—		—		34		8		—		—
Fair value — end of year	$	439	$	432	$	945	$	911	$	93	$	95
Change in benefit obligation:
Benefit obligation — beginning of year	$	491	$	420	$	1,067	$	913	$	94	$	87
Service cost	—		—		24		20		1		—
Interest cost	15		18		8		14		3		4
Participants' contributions	—		—		1		1		—		—

Actuarial (gain) loss	28		74		(19)		143		4		9
Benefits paid	(9)		(21)		(31)		(29)		(8)		(6)

Settlements	(15)		—		—		—		—		—
Currency impact	—		—		44		5		—		—
Benefit obligation — end of year	$	510	$	491	$	1,094	$	1,067	$	94	$	94
Overfunded (underfunded) status of PBO	$	(71)	$	(59)	$	(149)	$	(156)	$	(1)	$	1


Amounts recognized in the consolidated balance sheet consist of:
Other assets	$	—	$	—	$	123	$	106	$	—	$	1
Employee compensation and benefits	(1)		(1)		—		—		—		—
Retirement and post-retirement benefits	(70)		(58)		(272)		(262)		(1)		—
Total net asset (liability)	$	(71)	$	(59)	$	(149)	$	(156)	$	(1)	$	1


Amounts Recognized in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss):
Actuarial (gains) losses	$	134	$	115	$	311	$	330	$	11	$	10
Prior service costs (benefits)	—		—		—		—		(5)		(12)
Total	$	134	$	115	$	311	$	330	$	6	$	(2)

The amounts in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) expected to be recognized by Agilent as components of net expense during 2021 are as follows:


	U.S. Defined Benefit Plans		Non-U.S. Defined Benefit Plans		U.S. Post-Retirement Benefit Plans
	(in millions)
Amortization of net prior service cost (benefit)	$	—	$	—	$	(1)
Amortization of actuarial net loss	$	4	$	52	$	4

Investment Policies and Strategies as of October 31, 2020 and 2019. In the U.S., target asset allocations for our retirement and post-retirement benefit plans are approximately 80 percent to equities and approximately 20 percent to fixed income investments. Our DPSP target asset allocation is approximately 60 percent to equities and approximately 40 percent to fixed income investments. Approximately 1 percent of the retirement and post-retirement plans consist of limited partnerships. The general investment objective for all our plan assets is to obtain the optimum rate of investment return on the total investment portfolio consistent with the assumption of a reasonable level of risk. Specific investment objectives for the plans' portfolios are to: maintain and enhance the purchasing power of the plans' assets; achieve investment returns consistent with the level of risk being taken; and earn performance rates of return in accordance with the benchmarks adopted for each asset class. Outside the U.S., our target asset allocation ranges from 24 percent to 60 percent to equities, from 38 percent to 65 percent to fixed income investments, and from zero to 25 percent to real estate, depending on the plan. All plans' assets are broadly diversified. Due to fluctuations in equity markets, our actual allocations of plan assets at October 31, 2020 and 2019 differ from the target allocation. Our policy is to bring the actual allocation in line with the target allocation.

Equity securities include exchange-traded common stock and preferred stock of companies from broadly diversified industries. Fixed income securities include a global portfolio of corporate bonds of companies from diversified industries, government securities, mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, derivative instruments and other. Other investments include a group trust consisting primarily of private equity partnerships. Portions of the cash and cash equivalent, equity, and fixed income investments are held in commingled funds that are valued using Net Asset Value (“NAV”) as the practical expedient. In addition, some of the investments valued using NAV as the practical expedient may have limits on their redemption to weekly or monthly and/or may require prior written notice specified by each fund.

Fair Value. The measurement of the fair value of pension and post-retirement plan assets uses the valuation methodologies and the inputs as described in Note 13, "Fair Value Measurements".

Cash and Cash Equivalents - Cash and cash equivalents consist of short-term investment funds. The funds also invest in short-term domestic fixed income securities and other securities with debt-like characteristics emphasizing short-term maturities and quality. Some of our cash and cash equivalents are held in commingled funds. Other cash and cash equivalents are classified as Level 1 investments.

Equity - Some equity securities consisting of common and preferred stock that are not traded on an active market are valued at quoted prices reported by investment dealers based on the underlying terms of the security and comparison to similar securities traded on an active market; these are classified as Level 2 investments. Securities which have quoted prices in active markets are classified as Level 1 investments.

Fixed Income - Some of the fixed income securities are not actively traded and are valued at quoted prices based on the terms of the security and comparison to similar securities traded on an active market; these are classified as Level 2 investments. Securities which have quoted prices in active markets are classified as Level 1 investments.

Other Investments - Other investments also include partnership investments where, due to their private nature, pricing inputs are not readily observable. Asset valuations are developed by the general partners that manage the partnerships. These valuations are based on proprietary appraisals, application of public market multiples to private company cash flows, utilization of market transactions that provide valuation information for comparable companies and other methods. Holdings of limited partnerships are classified as Level 3.

Agilent has adopted the accounting guidance related to the presentation of certain investments using the NAV practical expedient. The accounting guidance exempts investments using this practical expedient from categorization within the fair value hierarchy.

The following tables present the fair value of U.S. Defined Benefit Plans assets classified under the appropriate level of the fair value hierarchy as of October 31, 2020 and 2019.


			Fair Value Measurement at October 31, 2020 Using
	October 31, 2020		Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)		Not Subject to Leveling (1)
	(in millions)
Cash and Cash Equivalents	$	1	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	1
Equity	357		77		—		—		280
Fixed Income	79		39		—		—		40
Other Investments	2		—		—		2		—
Total assets measured at fair value	$	439	$	116	$	—	$	2	$	321