Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Purchased by Sterling Financial Planning Inc.

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 189.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,081 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 2,672 shares during the quarter. Sterling Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $995,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 552.0% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on BDX. Barclays upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX stock traded up $0.94 on Thursday, reaching $233.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 891,562 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,406,878. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $229.40 and a 52 week high of $287.32. The company has a market capitalization of $67.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $240.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $242.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 6.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.98 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.05%.

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.