Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC Increases Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 25.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,115 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the period. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 59.2% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 8,786,190 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,513,421,000 after acquiring an additional 3,268,478 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth about $689,833,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,002,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,414,322,000 after purchasing an additional 1,259,750 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at about $211,097,000. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the second quarter worth about $155,080,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $211.00 to $202.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Argus increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Three 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 presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $203.27.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company 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 transaction, the director directly owned 22,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,167,375. The trade was a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 217 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.58, for a total transaction of $38,317.86. Following the sale, the director owned 35,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,324,389.28. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,249 shares of company stock valued at $231,358. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 2.1%

BDX stock opened at $181.62 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $186.54 and a 200 day moving average of $181.99. The firm has a market cap of $52.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.25. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $162.29 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released 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 business had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter. On average, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.04. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 8th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 71.36%.

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.