Norges Bank Invests $653.38 Million in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,793,193 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $653,377,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.32% of Becton, Dickinson and Company as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth about $313,000. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,682 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $385,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.9% during the 1st quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 10,692 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,449,000 after acquiring an additional 1,464 shares during the period. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 64.4% during the 1st quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,083 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $706,000 after acquiring an additional 1,208 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BDX. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $257.00 to $215.00 in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Argus increased their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $224.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $203.27.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $194.00 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $162.29 and a 1-year high of $251.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $187.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.37 billion, a PE ratio of 34.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.25.

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. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%.The company had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.05 per share. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.04. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 8th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.04%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director directly owned 22,226 shares in the company, valued at $4,167,375. This represents a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 217 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.58, for a total transaction of $38,317.86. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 35,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,324,389.28. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 1,249 shares of company stock valued at $231,358 over the last three months. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by 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.