Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by M. Kraus & Co

M. Kraus & Co cut its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 28.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,335 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 6,653 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up 1.1% of M. Kraus & Co’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. M. Kraus & Co’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,742,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,067,196,000 after purchasing an additional 184,288 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,751,187,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219,317 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,351,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,437,161,000 after purchasing an additional 66,024 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,401,126,000 after purchasing an additional 810,345 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,004,132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BDX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays lowered 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 note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Bank of America downgraded 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 note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $219.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,575 shares in the company, valued at $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,104 shares of company stock worth $399,675. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $172.06 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.25. The business’s 50 day moving average is $183.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $212.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.17 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend 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.