Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Purchased by Ethic Inc.

Ethic Inc. raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 36,857 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,533 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $8,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 8,015 shares in the company, valued at $1,872,464.30. The trade was a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,578 shares of company stock worth $795,986. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Raymond James downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $231.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $167.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $48.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $208.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $223.15.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 79.39%.

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.