Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 1,375 Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,375 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $312,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $401,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $767,000. Busey Bank raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after buying an additional 1,317,723 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total value of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. This trade represents a 31.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BDX. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $227.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.80, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $232.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $233.27. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 forecast 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 authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company 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.