Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 8.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,660 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 3,394 shares during the quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $8,168,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.7% in the first quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC now owns 984 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.2% in the first quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC now owns 4,317 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $989,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,188 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on BDX shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. 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. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $219.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.6%

NYSE:BDX opened at $169.93 on Friday. 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 has a twelve month low of $163.33 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The company has a market cap of $48.70 billion, a PE ratio of 32.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.25. The company's 50 day moving average is $177.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $209.86.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.17 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.

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