Altman Advisors Inc. Makes New $1.44 Million Investment in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Altman Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 5,954 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $1,436,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,181,483,000 after purchasing an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,146,374,000 after buying an additional 87,230 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,031,167,000 after buying an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $697,513,000 after buying an additional 89,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $655,149,000 after acquiring an additional 688,296 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on BDX shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Raymond James cut their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $221.55 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $64.04 billion, a PE ratio of 37.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $235.78 and a 200-day moving average of $234.80. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.97%.

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.