Northwest Investment Counselors LLC Sells 368 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Northwest Investment Counselors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 11,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 368 shares during the quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,786,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. Abound Wealth Management boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 96.0% during the 2nd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 196 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Tributary Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth about $49,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX traded down $3.29 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $240.46. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 249,437 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,388,632. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $237.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.18. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $262.23. The stock has a market cap of $69.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.08 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.96 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 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 dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. 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 lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $282.63.

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.