Shariaportfolio Inc. Purchases 121 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Shariaportfolio Inc. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,940 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 121 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for 0.9% of Shariaportfolio Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Shariaportfolio Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,953,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,364,096,000 after purchasing an additional 106,616 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,510,050,000 after purchasing an additional 111,101 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after purchasing an additional 460,440 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $720,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $647,082,000 after purchasing an additional 673,568 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $227.54 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $65.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.80, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.40. The business’s fifty day moving average is $232.90 and its 200 day moving average is $233.27. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. Research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total value of $159,593.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey William Henderson bought 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,872,464.30. The trade was a 23.02 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BDX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.29.

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.