Stifel Nicolaus Raises Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Price Target to $280.00

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) had its target price upped by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $270.00 to $280.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 17.37% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.13.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX stock traded up $5.79 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $238.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 325,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,421,918. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $286.46. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $232.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $236.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market capitalization of $68.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.36, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The firm had revenue of $5.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.73, for a total transaction of $781,209.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,676,942.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,615 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,381. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

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.