Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Receives $279.50 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $282.63.

BDX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James cut their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BDX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,123,450 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,369,681,000 after purchasing an additional 195,931 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,181,483,000 after buying an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,146,374,000 after acquiring an additional 87,230 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,031,167,000 after acquiring an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $697,513,000 after acquiring an additional 89,157 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $238.22 on Monday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $269.52. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $236.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $235.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $68.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.96 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.70%.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.