GSB Wealth Management LLC Sells 179 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

GSB Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,820 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 179 shares during the period. GSB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,094,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth approximately $46,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $243.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $70.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.02, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $228.08 and a 200 day moving average of $233.00. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $248.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.04 dividend. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.03%.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This trade represents a 8.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total value of $141,196.47. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,311,211.44. This represents a 9.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

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.