BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. Decreases Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. reduced its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 25.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,106 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 708 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL now owns 8,494 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,927,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 38.1% in the 4th quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 29,442 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,680,000 after buying an additional 8,129 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,230,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,458 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX opened at $229.51 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $65.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $251.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $232.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $232.71. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock 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 reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of 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. Barclays upped their target price on shares of 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,464.30. This trade represents a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total transaction of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,141 shares in the company, valued at $1,371,469.53. The trade was a 31.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,423 shares of company stock worth $1,239,780 over the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.