Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Sells 1,115 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 45,674 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,115 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for about 1.4% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $11,012,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 43.9% during the third quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 11,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,714,000 after purchasing an additional 3,436 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 208.9% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 236,682 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $57,064,000 after acquiring an additional 160,073 shares during the last quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.5% during the third quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,694 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,337,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,867 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,415,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 9,970 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,404,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BDX. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Raymond James lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, 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 research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $2.02 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $225.15. The company had a trading volume of 1,965,697 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,410,378. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.99. The company has a market capitalization of $65.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 63.97%.

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.