Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 51.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 185,865 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 62,963 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $45,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,876.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,715 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.81, for a total transaction of $399,269.15. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,252,750.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 8,615 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,381. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BDX has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.14.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.4 %

BDX stock traded down $1.00 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $230.74. The stock had a trading volume of 1,074,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,431,097. The firm has a market cap of $66.69 billion, a PE ratio of 50.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $287.32. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $232.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $236.58.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $5.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.04 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 13.90%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.86 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 10th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

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.