First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Reduces Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lessened its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,453 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 182 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $832,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 worth $1,181,483,000 after acquiring an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 2nd 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 purchasing an additional 87,230 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of 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. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 89,157 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $655,149,000 after purchasing an additional 688,296 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $235.24 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $237.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.05. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $259.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $67.99 billion, a PE ratio of 48.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.96 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.63.

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.