Pitcairn Co. Has $870,000 Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Pitcairn Co. cut its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,834 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 62 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $870,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. S.A. Mason LLC raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $694,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $345,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their price target 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. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,807,235. This trade represents a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,984 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,865. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 6.1 %

BDX stock opened at $208.03 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $59.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $230.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $231.33. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $204.95 and a 1-year high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued 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 net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback 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 purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.