Howard Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,054 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $466,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew 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 during the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% during 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 purchasing an additional 20,859 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at about $767,000. Busey Bank boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,031,000 after buying an additional 2,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the third 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,215,163.67. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total value of $139,741.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,113,949.51. The trade was a 4.29 % 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 over the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $230.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.27, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.40. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $232.96 and a 200 day moving average of $233.25.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.