Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. Invests $1.25 Million in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 6,459 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $1,253,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 256.8% during the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 132 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 285.3% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 131 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 463.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 169 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 77.8% during the 3rd quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 160 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on BDX shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $184.00 to $157.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.62.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total value of $334,010.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,509,228.70. This trade represents a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 953 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $174,027.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 36,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,713,291.43. This represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 2,787 shares of company stock valued at $551,391 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $156.01 on Tuesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $127.59 and a 52 week high of $187.35. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $184.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $188.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market cap of $44.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.17 and a beta of 0.24.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.76% and a net margin of 8.01%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.43 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.350-12.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.52%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 27th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase up to 0% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Company Profile

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD’s products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company’s operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD’s product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.