Korea Investment CORP Sells 3,822 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Korea Investment CORP decreased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 210,494 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,822 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $47,755,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,067,196,000 after purchasing an additional 184,288 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% in 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 last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in 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 buying an additional 111,101 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,004,132,000 after buying an additional 1,057,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,053,416 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $692,729,000 after acquiring an additional 66,873 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,984 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,865. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of BDX stock opened at $228.76 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $232.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.82. The company has a market capitalization of $65.68 billion, a PE ratio of 38.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program 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. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $278.29.

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.