World Investment Advisors Increases Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 24.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,482 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 3,881 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,463,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in 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 during the period. Northcape Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.5% during the first quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,814 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,248,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.7% during the first quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC now owns 984 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.2% during the first quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC now owns 4,317 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $989,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,188 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on BDX. Raymond James Financial lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company 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 lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $217.00 to $185.00 in a research 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 data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $219.22.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,575 shares in the company, valued at $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $175.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,640,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,565,844. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $163.33 and a 12 month high of $251.99. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $50.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a 50 day moving average of $172.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $206.96.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm 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%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.17 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.39%.

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.