Voloridge Investment Management LLC Buys 50,219 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 503.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 60,191 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 50,219 shares during the quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $13,656,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BDX. Waverly Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 127.1% during the 4th quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 3,470 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $787,000 after buying an additional 1,942 shares during the last quarter. Wesleyan Assurance Society grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 34.6% during the 4th quarter. Wesleyan Assurance Society now owns 62,265 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $14,120,000 after buying an additional 16,000 shares during the last quarter. Sone Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $916,000. Sovereign s Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth about $3,478,000. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 516,900 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $117,269,000 after purchasing an additional 57,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the firm's 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 in the company, valued at $964,107.36. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of the firm's 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 in the company, valued at $1,666,808.01. This represents a 20.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America cut shares of 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 cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $185.00 in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $221.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.8%

BDX stock traded up $3.10 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $174.48. The company had a trading volume of 2,010,580 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,932,323. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $50.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.98, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $197.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $218.17.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.07. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.39%.

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.