UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Purchases 263,666 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 17.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,746,913 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 263,666 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.60% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $396,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 3,429 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 97.7% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,788 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $859,000 after buying an additional 1,872 shares during the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,129 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,390,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Addenda Capital Inc. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. now owns 38,484 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $8,731,000 after buying an additional 3,156 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $0.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $171.49. The company had a trading volume of 1,950,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,929,773. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $163.33 and a one year high of $251.99. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $198.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $218.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market cap of $49.15 billion, a PE ratio of 28.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.17 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is 79.39%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total transaction of $436,325.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,411 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,666,808.01. This trade represents a 20.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value of $94,497.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares of the company's stock, valued at $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight 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 currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.