Becton, Dickinson and Company’s (BDX) “Neutral” Rating Reiterated at Citigroup

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reissued by stock analysts at Citigroup in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $185.00 target price on the medical instruments supplier’s stock, down from their previous target price of $217.00. Citigroup’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 6.78% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Barclays dropped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $221.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $173.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $49.65 billion, a PE ratio of 28.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $200.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $219.68.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value of $94,497.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at $964,107.36. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393 in the last ninety days. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Becton, Dickinson and Company

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter worth $26,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% 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.