Welch & Forbes LLC Decreases Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Welch & Forbes LLC trimmed its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 9.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,311 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 6,062 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $12,899,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter worth $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 341.4% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during 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. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $783,194.25. The trade was a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.5%

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded up $2.60 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $180.87. 2,822,332 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,130,765. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $173.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $205.02. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $163.33 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.84 billion, a PE ratio of 34.54, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.25.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 15.99%. The business's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. Research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 79.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BDX. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays lowered their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, William Blair downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $219.22.

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.