Dividend Assets Capital LLC Lowers Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Dividend Assets Capital LLC reduced its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,823 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 125 shares during the period. Dividend Assets Capital LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $414,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $39,951,000 after buying an additional 20,859 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at $767,000. Busey Bank raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,031,000 after acquiring an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after acquiring an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,807,235. The trade was a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted 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. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of BDX opened at $227.54 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $232.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $233.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.80, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.