Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX Shares Acquired by BankPlus Trust Department

BankPlus Trust Department increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 79.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,730 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 5,199 shares during the quarter. BankPlus Trust Department’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the second quarter worth approximately $3,721,533,000. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,000,064 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,269,960,000 after acquiring an additional 1,177,256 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 1,887,224 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 2nd quarter worth $474,993,000. Finally, Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.0% during the third quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 1,835,571 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $328,567,000 after acquiring an additional 150,931 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $217.95 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $140.11 and a 52-week high of $219.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.87. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $190.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $170.56. The firm has a market cap of $60.05 billion, a PE ratio of 52.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.07 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.11 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 5.66% and a return on equity of 14.90%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.96 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.21 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.06 per share. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 101.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael Feld sold 165 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.49, for a total value of $31,100.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 19,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,717,022.80. This trade represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Thomas Polen, Jr. sold 2,993 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total transaction of $628,530.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,134,230. This trade represents a 2.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 3,310 shares of company stock valued at $688,650 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on BDX. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $161.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Zacks Research raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $197.47.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Company Profile

Becton, Dickinson and Company, commonly known as BD, is a global medical technology company that develops and manufactures products used in healthcare, clinical laboratories and life sciences research. Founded in 1897, the company has a long history of producing medical devices and supplies. BD’s products include syringes, needles, infusion systems and medication-management technologies, as well as equipment and supplies for collecting and processing clinical specimens. The company also provides diagnostic systems, laboratory instruments and tools used in areas such as cell analysis and biomedical research.