Trust Point Inc. Buys New Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Trust Point Inc. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,158 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $494,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BDX. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $735,523,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% during 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. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% during 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. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $1,004,132,000 after buying an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake 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 buying an additional 810,345 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,575 shares in the company, valued at $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at $964,107.36. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $217.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced 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 note on Friday, May 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $219.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of BDX traded down $1.40 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $168.54. The company had a trading volume of 2,839,943 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,994,462. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $163.33 and a 1-year high of $251.99. The stock has a market cap of $48.30 billion, a PE ratio of 32.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.25. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $181.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $212.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 7.28%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.17 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 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.