Citigroup Lowers Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Price Target to $255.00

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) had its price objective lowered by Citigroup from $260.00 to $255.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a buy rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $280.14.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $229.13 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $287.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.47, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $232.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.93.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 6.76%. The firm had revenue of $5.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,715 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.81, for a total transaction of $399,269.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,381 shares in the company, valued at $1,252,750.61. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,615 shares of company stock worth $2,033,381 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Becton, Dickinson and Company

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.5% in the first quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 2,956 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.6% in the first quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 1,715 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,303 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,537,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,420 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edge Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC now owns 1,573 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $384,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.