Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC Takes Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 918 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $208,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BDX. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,953,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,364,096,000 after buying an additional 106,616 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,510,050,000 after acquiring an additional 111,101 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after acquiring an additional 460,440 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,181,483,000 after acquiring an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total transaction of $141,196.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,311,211.44. The trade was a 9.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,377,840. The trade was a 8.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.0 %

BDX opened at $238.05 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $227.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $232.79. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $248.42. The company has a market cap of $69.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.75%. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.50.

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.