Savant Capital LLC Sells 12,721 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Key Points

• Savant Capital LLC cut its Becton, Dickinson and Company stake by 59.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 12,721 shares and leaving it with 8,503 shares valued at about $1.65 million.
• Analyst sentiment on BDX is mixed, with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $183.64; recent moves included Barclays raising its target while Goldman Sachs and Piper Sandler lowered theirs.
• Becton, Dickinson reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $2.90 per share on $4.71 billion in revenue, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.05 per share, implying a 2.9% annual yield.

Savant Capital LLC reduced its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 59.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,503 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 12,721 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 95.6% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 463.3% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 169 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 77.8% in the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 160 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 64.2% in the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BDX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $202.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $156.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $170.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $183.64.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of BDX stock opened at $147.13 on Monday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $127.59 and a 1 year high of $187.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $151.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $176.99. The company has a market cap of $40.54 billion, a PE ratio of 37.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.42 and a beta of 0.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 5.33%.The business had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.35 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.520-12.720 EPS. Research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is 106.33%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Company Profile

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD's products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company's operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD's product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BDX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.