Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Decreases Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA trimmed its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 128,391 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,034 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $29,128,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 208 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,598,960. This represents a 6.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total transaction of $141,196.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,544 shares in the company, valued at $1,311,211.44. This represents a 9.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,984 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,865 over the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on BDX. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE BDX opened at $227.34 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $231.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $231.72. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $251.99. The company has a market capitalization of $65.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. Equities analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.10%.

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.