Yousif Capital Management LLC Trims Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Yousif Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 58,385 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 4,350 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $11,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crux Wealth Advisors boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Crux Wealth Advisors now owns 6,297 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,222,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 2,692 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $504,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 2,241 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $430,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 289 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Solutions LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Solutions LLC now owns 1,172 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $233.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $184.00 to $157.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $202.00 price objective on the stock. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $191.62.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $156.98 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $127.59 and a 52 week high of $187.35. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $172.86 and its 200 day moving average is $185.81. The company has a market cap of $44.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.61, a PEG ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.10. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 15.76%. The company had revenue of $4.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.350-12.650 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th were issued a $1.05 dividend. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.52%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 27th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to buy up to 0% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 953 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total value of $174,027.33. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 36,763 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,713,291.43. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,610 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $2,509,228.70. This represents a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,713 shares of company stock valued at $536,881 over the last quarter. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.