Quantinno Capital Management LP Boosts Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 35.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,442 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 2,752 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on BDX. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays reduced their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Raymond James cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, William Blair cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $221.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of BDX traded down $0.82 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $171.49. The company had a trading volume of 1,950,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,929,773. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $198.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.80. 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 $49.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

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 $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction of $94,497.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares in the company, valued at $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.