DRW Securities LLC Acquires New Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,001 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,951,000 after acquiring an additional 20,859 shares during the last quarter. Busey Bank boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,031,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399 shares in the last quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,382,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $647,082,000 after purchasing an additional 673,568 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at $8,215,163.67. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,675 shares of company stock valued at $1,057,182. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE BDX opened at $201.54 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.87 billion, a PE ratio of 33.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $223.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $229.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $193.03 and a 12 month high of $251.99.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.71.

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.