Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) EVP Michael David Garrison Sells 597 Shares

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total value of $141,196.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,311,211.44. This represents a 9.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Michael David Garrison also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, December 19th, Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total transaction of $633,810.54.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $240.19 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $248.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $227.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $232.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $69.66 billion, a PE ratio of 40.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.42 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BDX. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,953,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,364,096,000 after buying an additional 106,616 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,510,050,000 after acquiring an additional 111,101 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,293,635,000 after acquiring an additional 460,440 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,181,483,000 after purchasing an additional 302,893 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $720,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on BDX. Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.50.

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.