Bill Few Associates Inc. Buys 55 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Bill Few Associates Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 0.7% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 7,906 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 341.4% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on BDX shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, September 25th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $211.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $205.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock opened at $186.41 on Monday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $163.33 and a 12 month high of $251.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $190.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $185.73. The stock has a market cap of $53.43 billion, a PE ratio of 33.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.25.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 8th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 74.82%.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total value of $171,937.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,167,375. The trade was a 3.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 18th. The shares were 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 approximately $881,077.23. This trade represents a 19.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,023 shares of company stock valued at $562,036. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.