SFE Investment Counsel Cuts Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

SFE Investment Counsel trimmed its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,230 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 296 shares during the period. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BDX. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 1,852,278 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $451,641,000 after acquiring an additional 68,509 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.9% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 402,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $99,562,000 after purchasing an additional 18,786 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2,086.7% during the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 51,934 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $12,853,000 after buying an additional 49,559 shares during the period. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter worth about $11,998,000. Finally, Avity Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Avity Investment Management Inc. now owns 162,687 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,257,000 after acquiring an additional 5,527 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.3 %

BDX stock opened at $232.61 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $269.52. The company has a market capitalization of $67.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $234.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $235.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.85.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.08 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on BDX. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company 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.