Running Oak Capital LLC Raises Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Running Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 22.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 67,887 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 12,341 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up approximately 1.9% of Running Oak Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Running Oak Capital LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $15,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of BDX. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $6,067,196,000 after purchasing an additional 184,288 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% during the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 3,219,317 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,351,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,437,161,000 after purchasing an additional 66,024 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% during the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 810,345 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $168.58. The company had a trading volume of 5,093,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,008,389. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $163.33 and a 1-year high of $251.99. The firm has a market cap of $48.32 billion, a PE ratio of 32.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.25. The business's 50 day moving average price is $179.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $211.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The company 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%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.17 earnings per share. Research 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 79.39%.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $783,194.25. The trade was a 20.31% 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 Upgrades and Downgrades

BDX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $185.00 in a report 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 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 target price for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $219.22.

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.