Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board

Key Points

• The Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board reduced its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.2%, owning about 1.4 million shares, which accounts for approximately 4.9% of its holdings.
• Executives at Becton, Dickinson and Company, including Michael David Garrison and David Shan, sold shares, resulting in a significant decrease in their stock ownership.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.04 per share, providing a 2.4% yield based on an annualized dividend of $4.16.

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board reduced its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 8.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,448,293 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 129,164 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up approximately 4.9% of Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board owned about 0.50% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $331,746,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,002,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $6,414,322,000 after purchasing an additional 1,259,750 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,751,187,000 after buying an additional 3,219,317 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,843,856 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,567,654,000 after purchasing an additional 667,957 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,416,665 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $775,139,000 after purchasing an additional 2,722,829 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,091,149 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $707,872,000 after purchasing an additional 37,733 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Claire Fraser sold 863 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.30, for a total value of $165,954.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 23,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,450,398.90. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total transaction of $213,643.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at $881,077.23. The trade was a 19.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,214 shares of company stock valued at $579,206 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of BDX stock traded up $5.97 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $193.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,955,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,266,347. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $175.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $198.98. 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 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.50 billion, a PE ratio of 34.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.20.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.28. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The firm had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research 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 Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 79.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BDX shares. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Bank of America lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $211.33.

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.