Equitable Trust Co. Acquires 1,132 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Equitable Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,322 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,888,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Quilter Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $227,000. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,353 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $534,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 85.9% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,628 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,319,000 after buying an additional 6,759 shares during the period. V2 Financial group LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $349,000. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 18,519 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,201,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $233.62 per share, with a total value of $350,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,464.30. This represents a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $185,180.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at $3,807,235. The trade was a 4.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $229.35 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $232.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $234.02. The company has a market capitalization of $66.51 billion, a PE ratio of 38.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

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.