7,500 Shares in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Acquired by PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co

PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,500 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,702,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% in the fourth 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, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $221.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE BDX traded down $1.29 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $172.53. 3,358,673 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,928,632. The business's 50-day moving average is $192.64 and its 200-day moving average is $216.56. 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 quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. The firm 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 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current 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 given 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 2.41%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 79.39%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was 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 directly owns 4,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $964,107.36. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total value of $436,325.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,411 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,666,808.01. The trade was a 20.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

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.