Alberta Investment Management Corp Sells 10,100 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp reduced its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.5%, selling 10,100 shares and holding 12,600 shares valued at approximately $2.88 million.
• Multiple hedge funds have adjusted their positions in Becton, Dickinson, with Brighton Jones LLC increasing its stake by 98.2% during the fourth quarter.
• Becton, Dickinson’s stock has received several downgrades from analysts, with the average rating now at "Hold" and a consensus price target of $212.88.

Alberta Investment Management Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 44.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,600 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 10,100 shares during the quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,886,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 335 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 15,601 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $3,539,000 after acquiring an additional 1,658 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,373 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $763,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 4,976 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,129,000 after purchasing an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Raymond James Financial downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $212.88.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $176.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $251.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $174.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $200.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.50 billion, a PE ratio of 33.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.20.

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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors 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 2.4%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 4,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at $783,194.25. The trade was a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total value of $213,643.65. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $881,077.23. The trade was a 19.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BDX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.