Raiffeisen Bank International AG Buys New Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 152,788 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $34,608,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG owned approximately 0.05% of Becton, Dickinson and Company as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $171.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The firm has a market cap of $49.07 billion, a PE ratio of 28.44, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $205.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $221.80.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. The company’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.17 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,598,960. This represents a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,878 shares of company stock worth $636,393 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on BDX. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. 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 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.