Sciencast Management LP Acquires New Shares in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP has acquired 15,357 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company, valued at approximately $3.5 million.
• Institutional investors own approximately 86.97% of Becton, Dickinson's stock, with significant stake increases from firms like Goldman Sachs and Parkman Healthcare Partners.
• Becton, Dickinson announced a quarterly dividend of $1.04 per share, representing an annual yield of 2.2% and a payout ratio of 74.82%.

Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 15,357 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $3,518,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,002,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $6,414,322,000 after buying an additional 1,259,750 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,575,351 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $2,880,510,000 after buying an additional 448,644 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,843,856 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,567,654,000 after buying an additional 667,957 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,420,887 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,012,649,000 after buying an additional 312,124 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,091,149 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $707,872,000 after buying an additional 37,733 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE:BDX traded down $3.34 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $187.23. 1,118,088 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,747,428. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $186.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $191.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $53.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.27.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.28. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%.The company had revenue of $5.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.50 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.300-14.450 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 74.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective (up previously from $185.00) on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $211.44.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total value of $213,643.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,887 shares in the company, valued at $881,077.23. This represents a 19.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total value of $171,937.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 22,226 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,167,375. This trade represents a 3.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,965 shares of company stock valued at $551,536. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company 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.