Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Increases Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,396 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $6,436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 103,004 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,115,000 after purchasing an additional 22,207 shares in the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% in the third quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 16,640 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,302,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,685,000 after buying an additional 6,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 714,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $174,122,000 after buying an additional 7,790 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $234.36 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $229.40 and a one year high of $287.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.54, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $239.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $241.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.08.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of 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 target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate 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.