Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX Stock Position Reduced by ProShare Advisors LLC

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its Becton, Dickinson stake by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 69,455 shares and leaving it with 901,808 shares worth about $175 million.
• Analysts are broadly cautious on BDX: the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $184.86, with several firms recently lowering targets or issuing downgrades.
• Becton, Dickinson reported mixed but solid fundamentals, beating earnings and revenue estimates for the quarter and raising FY2026 EPS guidance, while also maintaining a 3.0% dividend yield and announcing a stock buyback plan.

ProShare Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 901,808 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 69,455 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.32% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $175,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 285.3% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 131 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Steph & Co. grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 95.6% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 463.3% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 169 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 77.8% during the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 160 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $215.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $175.00 target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $184.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 953 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $174,027.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 36,763 shares in the company, valued at $6,713,291.43. This represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,102 shares of company stock worth $198,909. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $142.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $154.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $178.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $127.59 and a 1-year high of $187.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.04, a PEG ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 0.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.67 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 5.33% and a return on equity of 15.37%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.35 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.520-12.720 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 106.33%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 27th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to purchase up to 0% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD's products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company's operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD's product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.

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