Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Acquired by Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,501 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,073,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 103,004 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,115,000 after buying an additional 22,207 shares during the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 16,640 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,302,000 after buying an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,685,000 after acquiring an additional 6,190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $542,348.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $231.01 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.08. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $229.85 and a 1 year high of $287.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $240.49 and a 200-day moving average of $242.72. The company has a market cap of $66.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.43.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.29. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 6.44%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.98 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.00.

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.