Keystone Financial Group Sells 312 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Keystone Financial Group reduced its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 312 shares during the quarter. Keystone Financial Group’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $802,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $39,951,000 after acquiring an additional 20,859 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,031,000 after acquiring an additional 2,399 shares in the last quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $8,382,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $647,082,000 after purchasing an additional 673,568 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $201.54 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.87 billion, a PE ratio of 33.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $223.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $229.81. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $193.03 and a twelve month high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. Equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 69.10%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,015 shares in the company, valued at $1,872,464.30. This trade represents a 23.02 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total transaction of $436,325.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,411 shares in the company, valued at $1,666,808.01. The trade was a 20.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,675 shares of company stock worth $1,057,182. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $275.71.

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.