WBH Advisory Inc. Grows Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

WBH Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 18.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,803 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the period. WBH Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 341.4% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $193.65 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.20. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $175.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $198.98.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.28. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%. The firm had revenue of $5.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.50 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.50 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 79.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BDX. Bank of America cut shares of 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 report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $211.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total transaction of $213,643.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $881,077.23. The trade was a 19.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,214 shares of company stock valued at $579,206 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.