Rafferty Asset Management LLC Grows Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 11.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,777 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 3,461 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $7,436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $735,523,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,751,187,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219,317 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,416,665 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $775,139,000 after purchasing an additional 2,722,829 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,004,132,000 after buying an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,401,126,000 after buying an additional 810,345 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the business's 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 in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,598,960. This represents a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $0.95 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $172.19. The stock had a trading volume of 1,742,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,924,931. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The company has a market capitalization of $49.35 billion, a PE ratio of 28.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The firm's fifty day moving average is $200.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $219.68.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last announced 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. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.17 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BDX shares. Raymond James lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 target price for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $221.44.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.