Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) Competitors

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) are both large-cap medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, media sentiment, valuation, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, community ranking, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in BDX or ABT?

87.0% of Becton, Dickinson and Company shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.2% of Abbott Laboratories shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Becton, Dickinson and Company shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Abbott Laboratories shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media prefer BDX or ABT?

In the previous week, Abbott Laboratories had 3 more articles in the media than Becton, Dickinson and Company. MarketBeat recorded 16 mentions for Abbott Laboratories and 13 mentions for Becton, Dickinson and Company. Abbott Laboratories' average media sentiment score of 0.96 beat Becton, Dickinson and Company's score of 0.93 indicating that Abbott Laboratories is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Becton, Dickinson and Company	9 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Abbott Laboratories	9 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has better earnings and valuation, BDX or ABT?

Abbott Laboratories has higher revenue and earnings than Becton, Dickinson and Company. Abbott Laboratories is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Becton, Dickinson and Company, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Becton, Dickinson and Company	$19.37B	3.59	$1.48B	$4.54	53.00
Abbott Laboratories	$40.11B	4.67	$5.72B	$3.21	33.51

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer BDX or ABT?

Abbott Laboratories received 331 more outperform votes than Becton, Dickinson and Company when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 69.67% of users gave Abbott Laboratories an outperform vote while only 62.37% of users gave Becton, Dickinson and Company an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Becton, Dickinson and Company	Outperform Votes 590 62.37%	Underperform Votes 356 37.63%
Abbott Laboratories	Outperform Votes 921 69.67%	Underperform Votes 401 30.33%

Is BDX or ABT more profitable?

Abbott Laboratories has a net margin of 13.96% compared to Becton, Dickinson and Company's net margin of 6.76%. Abbott Laboratories' return on equity of 20.18% beat Becton, Dickinson and Company's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Becton, Dickinson and Company	6.76%	13.90%	6.73%
Abbott Laboratories	13.96%	20.18%	10.60%

Is BDX or ABT a better dividend stock?

Becton, Dickinson and Company pays an annual dividend of $3.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Abbott Laboratories pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Becton, Dickinson and Company pays out 83.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Abbott Laboratories pays out 68.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Abbott Laboratories is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Which has more volatility and risk, BDX or ABT?

Becton, Dickinson and Company has a beta of 0.44, indicating that its stock price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Abbott Laboratories has a beta of 0.74, indicating that its stock price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts recommend BDX or ABT?

Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus target price of $280.17, indicating a potential upside of 16.43%. Abbott Laboratories has a consensus target price of $120.64, indicating a potential upside of 12.14%. Given Becton, Dickinson and Company's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Becton, Dickinson and Company is more favorable than Abbott Laboratories.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Becton, Dickinson and Company	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.83
Abbott Laboratories	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.70

Summary

Abbott Laboratories beats Becton, Dickinson and Company on 15 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.