TD Asset Management Inc. Buys 6,758 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

TD Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 445,187 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 6,758 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $101,000,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,067,196,000 after purchasing an additional 184,288 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of 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 worth $3,364,096,000 after buying an additional 106,616 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,510,050,000 after buying an additional 111,101 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,004,132,000 after buying an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,053,416 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $692,729,000 after acquiring an additional 66,873 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $227.96 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The business has a 50-day moving average of $232.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $231.87. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total value of $159,593.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at $8,215,163.67. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,807,235. The trade was a 4.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,984 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,865 in the last 90 days. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.