Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Stake Trimmed by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 398,474 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 5,097 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned about 0.14% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $90,402,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of BDX. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $735,523,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,751,187,000 after acquiring an additional 3,219,317 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,416,665 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $775,139,000 after acquiring an additional 2,722,829 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,004,132,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,175,899 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,401,126,000 after acquiring an additional 810,345 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $0.95 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $172.19. 2,097,870 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,927,180. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a fifty day moving average of $200.69 and a 200-day moving average of $219.68. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.17 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total transaction of $436,325.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,411 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders have sold a total of 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393 in the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. Piper Sandler cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $260.00 to $185.00 in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays lowered their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut 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 assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently 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.