Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Stock Holdings Lifted by Hartford Funds Management Co LLC

Hartford Funds Management Co LLC raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,443 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the period. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $589,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after purchasing an additional 460,440 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during 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 period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the 2nd 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 purchasing an additional 346,720 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $720,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $697,513,000 after acquiring an additional 89,157 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $224.00 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.74 billion, a PE ratio of 37.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $249.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $235.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $234.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. Becton, Dickinson and 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 company posted $3.42 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 63.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on BDX. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.00.

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.