Handelsbanken Fonder AB Decreases Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB trimmed its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 152,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 8,926 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned about 0.05% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $34,829,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew 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 buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its holdings 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 valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction of $94,497.12. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,575 shares in the company, valued at $783,194.25. This represents a 20.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,104 shares of company stock worth $399,675. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped 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. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $219.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of BDX traded up $2.18 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $174.90. The stock had a trading volume of 615,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,958,910. 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 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $213.79. The firm has a market cap of $50.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.25.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.17 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 79.39%.

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.