Banque Transatlantique SA Takes Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 19,405 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $4,380,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $6,067,196,000 after acquiring an additional 184,288 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,751,187,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219,317 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,351,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,437,161,000 after purchasing an additional 66,024 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,401,126,000 after purchasing an additional 810,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,004,132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,057,879 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. Raymond James cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. William Blair lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $231.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value of $94,497.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,578 shares of company stock valued at $795,986 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.1 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $1.87 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $165.13. The stock had a trading volume of 3,662,914 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,829,951. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $212.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.41 billion, a PE ratio of 27.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $163.33 and a 12 month high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.