Freedom Investment Management Inc. Acquires 67 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,291 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 47,040 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $11,341,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares during the period. M.D. Sass LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth $44,653,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth $265,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $60,000. Finally, Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. now owns 618,162 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $149,038,000 after purchasing an additional 27,429 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised 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. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.0 %

BDX stock opened at $221.90 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $64.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $249.89. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $234.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $234.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

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.