Fifth Third Bancorp Buys 1,568 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 44,120 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,568 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $10,010,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total value of $139,741.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,217 shares in the company, valued at $3,113,949.51. The trade was a 4.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total value of $633,810.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. The trade was a 31.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $243.69 on Monday. 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 capitalization of $70.67 billion, a PE ratio of 41.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $228.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $233.08. 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 results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BDX. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on 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. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.50.

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.