Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Purchased by Moors & Cabot Inc.

Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 9,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 438 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,068,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $345,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC now owns 1,110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,280 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on BDX. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays increased their target price 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 raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.4 %

BDX stock opened at $223.95 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $232.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $232.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The firm has a market cap of $64.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.20, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 36,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,423 shares of company stock worth $1,239,780 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

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.