Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. cut its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 467,065 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 13,322 shares during the quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $105,963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $401,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% during the 4th 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 buying an additional 20,859 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter worth $767,000. Busey Bank boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 2,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centre Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at about $8,382,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. 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 note on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler increased their target price 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. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.29.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares in the company, valued at $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total value of $141,196.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,311,211.44. This trade represents a 9.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,984 shares of company stock worth $1,147,865 in the last 90 days. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX stock opened at $227.34 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $231.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $231.73. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The firm has a market cap of $65.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. 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 (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly 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, equities research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has authorized a stock 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 reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.