First Pacific Financial Grows Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

First Pacific Financial raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,874 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the quarter. First Pacific Financial’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 2,978 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $696,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.5% in the first quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 2,956 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 1,715 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $424,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI upped 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 report 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. Raymond James lowered their price target on 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. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $282.63.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.8 %

BDX traded up $1.96 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $241.98. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,127,275 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,399,019. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $262.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $236.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market cap of $69.93 billion, a PE ratio of 53.26, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The business had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th were issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

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.