Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Reduces Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co lowered its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 34.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,808 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 1,992 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $864,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wahed Invest LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 7,481 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,697,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $3,317,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $99,627,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $912,000. Finally, Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,583,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $1.81 during trading on Monday, reaching $166.97. 4,291,205 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,820,234. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $213.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.96. The company has a market cap of $47.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.74, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $165.72 and a 1-year high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.17 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. William Blair lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $235.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the company's 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total value of $436,325.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,411 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,666,808.01. The trade was a 20.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,578 shares of company stock valued at $795,986. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.