Running Oak Capital LLC Has $12.60 Million Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Running Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,546 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,968 shares during the quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $12,602,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth about $767,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $720,089,000 after acquiring an additional 1,317,723 shares during the period. Centre Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,382,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $647,082,000 after purchasing an additional 673,568 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.3% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 561,040 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $135,267,000 after purchasing an additional 12,845 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3 %

BDX stock opened at $243.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $248.42. The business has a 50-day moving average of $228.08 and a 200-day moving average of $233.00. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total value of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. This trade represents a 31.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.