Boston Trust Walden Corp Reduces Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Boston Trust Walden Corp trimmed its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 1.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 345,182 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 6,612 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned approximately 0.12% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $79,067,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in 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 buying an additional 184,288 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 3,219,317 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,351,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,437,161,000 after acquiring an additional 66,024 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% during the 4th 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 grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,004,132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,057,879 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of BDX stock traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $168.71. The stock had a trading volume of 956,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,990,539. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm's 50-day moving average is $180.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $211.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.25.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.47%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

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 dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total transaction of $199,607.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at $783,194.25. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 4,887 shares in the company, 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. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on BDX shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. William Blair cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, 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 research report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.