Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Receives $219.22 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Key Points

• Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) has received an average recommendation of "Hold" from eleven research firms, with seven analysts recommending hold and four recommending buy.
• The company's recent earnings report revealed $3.35 earnings per share (EPS), exceeding analysts' expectations, although revenue was below consensus estimates at $5.27 billion.
• Becton, Dickinson and Company has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.04 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.24% and a payout ratio of 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $219.22.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on BDX shares. Raymond James Financial cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total transaction of $199,607.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $783,194.25. This represents a 20.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total value of $213,643.65. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $881,077.23. The trade was a 19.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in 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 worth $2,751,187,000 after buying an additional 3,219,317 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth approximately $689,833,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,416,665 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $775,139,000 after buying an additional 2,722,829 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,002,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $6,414,322,000 after buying an additional 1,259,750 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth approximately $211,097,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.4%

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $0.72 during trading on Friday, hitting $181.66. 1,846,538 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,752,471. The business's 50 day moving average is $174.71 and its 200 day moving average is $201.68. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $251.99. The company has a market capitalization of $52.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.67, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 7.28%. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.17 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

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.