Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Price Target Raised to $280.00 at Piper Sandler

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) had its price objective increased by Piper Sandler from $275.00 to $280.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on BDX. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research 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 an average price target of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of BDX opened at $249.75 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $228.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $233.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $250.91. The stock has a market cap of $72.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,113,949.51. This represents a 4.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716 over the last 90 days. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% during the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

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.