Veritas Asset Management LLP Sells 629,501 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Veritas Asset Management LLP decreased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 31.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,393,329 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 629,501 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company comprises 3.9% of Veritas Asset Management LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Veritas Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $210,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 14,668.6% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 69,907,953 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $10,579,171,000 after acquiring an additional 69,434,598 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 22,225.2% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 40,711,035 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $790,079,000 after acquiring an additional 40,528,680 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the second quarter worth about $3,721,533,000. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,989,132 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,714,871,000 after purchasing an additional 116,737 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.8% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 13,815,335 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,090,675,000 after buying an additional 1,887,224 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $202.00 to $204.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group began coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $187.67.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 2.9%

BDX stock traded down $5.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $179.35. The stock had a trading volume of 1,804,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,583,599. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $49.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 13.02 and a beta of 0.21. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $171.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $160.61. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $127.59 and a 1-year high of $193.07.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.89 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.79% and a net margin of 4.52%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.68 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.620-12.720 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be paid a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 126.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Roland Goette sold 2,438 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.84, for a total value of $440,887.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,686,559.04. This represents a 14.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas E. Polen, Jr. sold 4,152 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.00, for a total transaction of $768,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,380,155. This trade represents a 3.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 9,105 shares of company stock worth $1,590,208 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD’s products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company’s operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD’s product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.