NTV Asset Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

NTV Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,363 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 649 shares during the period. NTV Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $763,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,872,464.30. The trade was a 23.02 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total value of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at $8,215,163.67. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on BDX. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.1 %

BDX opened at $224.89 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $65.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $232.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $233.67. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $251.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. On average, equities analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.10%.

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.