Toronto Dominion Bank Grows Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 160,305 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 10,719 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank owned 0.06% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $36,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $32,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value 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. This represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393 in the last 90 days. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:BDX traded down $0.95 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $172.19. 2,097,870 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,924,937. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $200.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $219.68. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year 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.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.17 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on BDX. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. William Blair cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $185.00 price target (down previously from $217.00) on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $221.44.

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.