Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Position Boosted by Violich Capital Management Inc.

Violich Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,514 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 341.4% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” 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 reduced their price target for the stock from $260.00 to $185.00 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $219.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $177.15 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $50.77 billion, a PE ratio of 33.81, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.25. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $172.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $205.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $163.33 and a twelve month high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 15.99%. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.17 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 79.39%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.