Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning.

BDX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $224.09 on Wednesday. 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 has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $249.89. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $230.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $233.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.79 billion, a PE ratio of 37.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,113,949.51. The trade was a 4.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased 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 valued at $3,364,096,000 after purchasing an additional 106,616 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,510,050,000 after buying an additional 111,101 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% during 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 purchasing an additional 460,440 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised 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 worth $1,181,483,000 after purchasing an additional 302,893 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,031,167,000 after buying an additional 346,720 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.