Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Holdings Decreased by Advisor OS LLC

Advisor OS LLC reduced its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 63.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,198 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,753 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Tompkins Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 2,937 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $708,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Umpqua Bank boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 2,738 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $660,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Americana Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $354,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,217 shares in the company, valued at $3,113,949.51. This represents a 4.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX opened at $227.46 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $65.31 billion, a PE ratio of 37.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $233.11 and a 200-day moving average of $233.17. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $251.99.

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 return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.