Great Lakes Retirement Inc. Grows Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Great Lakes Retirement Inc. lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,467 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 91 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $845,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Northcape Capital Pty Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Northcape Capital Pty Ltd now owns 14,689 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,582,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 13,484 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,288,000 after acquiring an additional 2,237 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 8,739 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,131,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,420 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Columbia Trust Co 01012016 boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Columbia Trust Co 01012016 now owns 2,383 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $581,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded up $1.37 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $247.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 666,809 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,465,431. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $239.20 and a 200-day moving average of $245.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $71.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $229.85 and a twelve month high of $287.32.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.29. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.98 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 90.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BDX. Raymond James increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $310.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.17.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

Becton, Dickinson and Company develops, manufactures, and sells medical supplies, devices, laboratory equipment, and diagnostic products for healthcare institutions, physicians, life science researchers, clinical laboratories, pharmaceutical industry, and the general public worldwide. The company operates in three segments: BD Medical, BD Life Sciences, and BD Interventional.