Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX Shares Acquired by Howe & Rusling Inc.

Howe & Rusling Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 15.2% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 27,890 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,688 shares during the period. Howe & Rusling Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $6,388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,002,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,414,322,000 after buying an additional 1,259,750 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,575,351 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,880,510,000 after purchasing an additional 448,644 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.8% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,843,856 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,567,654,000 after purchasing an additional 667,957 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 7.6% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,420,887 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,012,649,000 after purchasing an additional 312,124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.2% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,091,149 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $707,872,000 after purchasing an additional 37,733 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total transaction of $171,937.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 22,226 shares in the company, valued at $4,167,375. This represents a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total value of $213,643.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $881,077.23. This trade represents a 19.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,965 shares of company stock valued at $551,536 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock opened at $190.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.27, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.27. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $163.33 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $192.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $5.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.50 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%.The company’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.50 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.300-14.450 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 74.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $217.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $200.00 price target (up from $185.00) on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $211.44.

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.