Scientech Research LLC Makes New $1.08 Million Investment in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Scientech Research LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,739 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,075,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,743,052 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $6,067,196,000 after acquiring an additional 184,288 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position 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 valued at $2,751,187,000 after acquiring an additional 3,219,317 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,351,537 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,437,161,000 after acquiring an additional 66,024 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position 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 valued at $1,401,126,000 after acquiring an additional 810,345 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% during 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 buying an additional 1,057,879 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 of the company's stock, valued at $964,107.36. This represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on BDX. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $192.00 target price for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $231.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE:BDX traded down $0.33 on Tuesday, hitting $176.72. The company had a trading volume of 2,745,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,919,943. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.36, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $202.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $220.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The firm's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is currently 79.39%.

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.