Virtue Capital Management LLC Has $430,000 Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Virtue Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 34.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,894 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. Virtue Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $430,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the company’s 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 directly owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total transaction of $436,325.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,411 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,666,808.01. This represents a 20.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $171.49 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $197.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $218.17. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BDX. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. William Blair lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America lowered 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 research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $221.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Profile

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.