TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. Raises Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 8.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,385 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 1,465 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,263,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Bill Few Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% during the second quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc. now owns 7,906 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,362,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.0% in the second quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,844 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Mendel Money Management grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.6% in the second quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 2,254 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Plancorp LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $343,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 2,586 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $445,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BDX. Argus upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $224.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $203.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total value of $171,937.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,167,375. This trade represents a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 217 shares of the company’s 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 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 have sold 1,249 shares of company stock worth $231,358 over the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE BDX opened at $192.57 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $186.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $182.21. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $162.29 and a 12 month high of $251.99. 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 company has a market capitalization of $55.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.25.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Profile

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.