Geller Advisors LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Geller Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 9.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,206 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 130 shares during the period. Geller Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $231.44.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $964,107.36. This trade represents a 8.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,578 shares of company stock worth $795,986 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX opened at $167.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.01 billion, a PE ratio of 27.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The business’s 50-day moving average is $208.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $223.15. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.