Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX Shares Acquired by Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 55.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,838 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,718 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $833,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BDX. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 worth $29,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total value of $171,937.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 22,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,167,375. This trade represents a 3.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,895 shares of company stock valued at $358,995. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (up previously from $185.00) on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $211.00 price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $205.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $181.49 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $251.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.02 billion, a PE ratio of 32.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.25. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $189.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $183.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 14th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The company had revenue of $5.32 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.