Arlington Partners LLC Increases Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Arlington Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 287.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,987 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 13,342 shares during the quarter. Arlington Partners LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,120,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2,889.7% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,033 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 1,965 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.3% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 15,688 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $3,594,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Mattern Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.9% during the first quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 33,619 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $7,701,000 after buying an additional 1,260 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.9% in the first quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 569 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $130,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.6% in the first quarter. Palisade Asset Management LLC now owns 47,820 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $10,954,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction of $94,497.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,575 shares in the company, valued at $783,194.25. The trade was a 20.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX traded down $1.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $169.86. 687,374 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,558,605. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The company's 50-day moving average is $177.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $210.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $48.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.25.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 15.99%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.17 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is currently 79.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BDX shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. 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 research report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $217.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Eight equities research 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 company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $219.22.

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.