Icon Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 1,031 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Icon Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 165.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,655 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,031 shares during the quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $399,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the second quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BDX shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock opened at $221.90 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $234.13. The stock has a market cap of $64.14 billion, a PE ratio of 37.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $249.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 70.03%.

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.