Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Acquired by Bridges Investment Management Inc.

Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,377 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,489 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,489,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 20,859 shares in the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $767,000. Busey Bank increased 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 worth $15,031,000 after acquiring an additional 2,399 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on BDX shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX opened at $225.57 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.77 billion, a PE ratio of 37.47, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $233.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $233.02.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its 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 return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,544 shares of company stock worth $2,370,309 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

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.