Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co Has $2.49 Million Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lessened its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,328 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 980 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position 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 worth $1,293,635,000 after acquiring an additional 460,440 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at about $108,243,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 62.2% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,107,317 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $266,974,000 after purchasing an additional 424,487 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $227.17 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $231.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $233.40. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $249.89. 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 market cap of $65.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.41.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 70.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.50.

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.