Easterly Investment Partners LLC Buys New Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Easterly Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 2,454 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $423,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.5% in the second quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 16,040 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,763,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.6% in the second quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,927 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $676,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.3% in the second quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,112 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.4% in the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,365,509 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $577,420,000 after acquiring an additional 12,602 shares during the period. Finally, S Bank Fund Management Ltd bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the second quarter valued at $5,108,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BDX. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $200.00 price target (up from $185.00) on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $211.00 price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Argus increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $205.40.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total value of $171,937.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,226 shares in the company, valued at $4,167,375. This trade represents a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 1,838 shares of company stock valued at $348,392 in the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $189.20 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $190.60 and its 200-day moving average is $184.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.23 billion, a PE ratio of 34.03, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.25. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 14th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%. Equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th were issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 8th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.82%.

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.