Toth Financial Advisory Corp Boosts Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $5,766,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth $46,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,113,949.51. This trade represents a 4.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total transaction of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. This represents a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $243.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.67 billion, a PE ratio of 41.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $248.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $228.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $233.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.03%.

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.