Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Stock Holdings Trimmed by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 17.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,262 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 259 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $295,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.4% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 2,978 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 2,956 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $731,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.6% during the first quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 1,715 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $424,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% in the second quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edge Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $384,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on BDX shares. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed 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. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $233.66 on Thursday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $269.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.53 billion, a PE ratio of 51.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $234.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $235.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.08 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.96 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

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.