Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. Lowers Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,693 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,314 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company comprises approximately 1.0% of Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $8,634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BDX. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $735,523,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,751,187,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219,317 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,416,665 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $775,139,000 after purchasing an additional 2,722,829 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,004,132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,057,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,401,126,000 after purchasing an additional 810,345 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Raymond James lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on 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. 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.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $219.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction of $94,497.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 sold 2,104 shares of company stock valued at $399,675 in the last three months. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE BDX opened at $174.31 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $183.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $163.33 and a one year high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $49.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.25.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted 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 return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.