Man Group plc Sells 47,237 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Man Group plc reduced its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 87.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,003 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 47,237 shares during the period. Man Group plc's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,589,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $50,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $173.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 890,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,513,110. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The company has a market capitalization of $49.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.78, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. 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's fifty day moving average price is $194.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $217.56.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS 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 given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BDX. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America cut shares of 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. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $221.44.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

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.