Geller Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Geller Advisors LLC decreased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 9.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,206 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 130 shares during the period. Geller Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $274,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $694,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Americana Partners LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value of $94,497.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total value of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at $8,215,163.67. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,578 shares of company stock worth $795,986. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $167.22 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $163.33 and a 1-year high of $251.99. 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 stock’s 50-day moving average is $208.84 and its 200 day moving average is $223.15. The stock has a market cap of $48.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results 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. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The company had revenue of $5.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on BDX. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Bank of America cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $231.44.

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.