California State Teachers Retirement System Reduces Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

California State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 461,957 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 11,398 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.17% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $69,907,953 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,721,533,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 11,646,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,260,139,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651,592 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,885,361 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,331,165,000 after purchasing an additional 53,884 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 22,225.2% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 40,711,035 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $790,079,000 after purchasing an additional 40,528,680 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 23,219.2% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,155,709 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $769,397,000 after purchasing an additional 4,137,888 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Michael Feld sold 165 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.49, for a total transaction of $31,100.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 19,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,717,022.80. The trade was a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 2,438 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.84, for a total transaction of $440,887.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,856 shares in the company, valued at $2,686,559.04. The trade was a 14.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 8,005 shares of company stock valued at $1,423,580 in the last ninety days. 0.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE BDX traded up $3.64 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $186.55. The stock had a trading volume of 862,615 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,551,239. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market cap of $51.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.53 and a beta of 0.21. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $173.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.49. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $127.59 and a fifty-two week high of $193.07.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.89 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 4.52% and a return on equity of 14.79%. The company's revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.68 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.620-12.720 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.67 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is 126.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $161.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $156.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $195.00 price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $187.67.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Company Profile

Becton, Dickinson and Company, commonly known as BD, is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells products used by healthcare providers, researchers and pharmaceutical companies. Founded in 1897 by Maxwell Becton and Fairleigh Dickinson, the company is headquartered in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey.

BD's products support medication delivery, infection prevention, diagnostics and surgical care. Its portfolio includes needles, syringes, injection devices, infusion products, medication-management systems, specimen-collection products, laboratory instruments and diagnostic technologies.

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