Patten & Patten Inc. TN Has $1.25 Million Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Patten & Patten Inc. TN lessened its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,179 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,502 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,249,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 30.2% in the first quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,735,000 after buying an additional 2,565 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 225.9% during the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 7,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,924,000 after acquiring an additional 5,389 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 380.8% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 58,923 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $14,580,000 after buying an additional 46,668 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.6% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 280,193 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $69,334,000 after buying an additional 37,851 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.9% in the second quarter. M&G Plc now owns 709,259 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $165,967,000 after acquiring an additional 6,052 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $234.73 on Tuesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $249.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The company’s 50-day moving average is $237.04 and its 200 day moving average is $235.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.43.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for 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%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.00.

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.