Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Advisors Capital Management LLC

Advisors Capital Management LLC lessened its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 15.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,439 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 256 shares during the period. Advisors Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $327,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,067,196,000 after purchasing an additional 184,288 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,351,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,437,161,000 after buying an additional 66,024 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,401,126,000 after buying an additional 810,345 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,004,132,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,265,638 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $967,745,000 after acquiring an additional 267,436 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction of $94,497.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,675 shares of company stock valued at $1,057,182. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $275.71.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $202.02 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $58.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $193.03 and a fifty-two week high of $251.99. The business has a fifty day moving average of $222.67 and a 200-day moving average of $229.37.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. As a group, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

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.