Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Acquires New Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 265,674 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $60,273,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.09% of Becton, Dickinson and Company at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BDX. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction 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 transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares in the company, valued at $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393 over the last 90 days. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:BDX traded up $0.77 during trading on Thursday, hitting $173.78. 2,675,173 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,933,184. The stock has a market cap of $49.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $163.33 and a fifty-two week high of $251.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $194.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $217.56. 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 (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.17 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BDX shares. Citigroup lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $221.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company 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.