Cetera Investment Advisers Buys 12,485 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 18.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 78,838 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 12,485 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $18,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 341.4% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter worth $34,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BDX. Wall Street Zen lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. William Blair downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $219.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $3.03 on Friday, hitting $175.22. 2,507,784 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,629,720. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $163.33 and a one year 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 company has a fifty day moving average of $174.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $201.28. The company has a market capitalization of $50.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.25.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 EPS 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 company had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.17 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were 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 owned 4,575 shares in the company, valued at $783,194.25. This represents a 20.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $881,077.23. This trade represents a 19.52% 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 company insiders.

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.