Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. Purchases 4,567 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 2.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 185,382 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 4,567 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up approximately 2.8% of Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. owned 0.06% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $42,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted 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 during the last quarter. Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on BDX. Wells Fargo & Company cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Bank of America cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $219.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX traded up $1.30 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $169.72. The company had a trading volume of 3,083,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,012,689. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $163.33 and a twelve 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 company's 50-day moving average is $179.58 and its 200-day moving average is $211.12. The company has a market capitalization of $48.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.17 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value of $94,497.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. This trade 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 owned by corporate 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.