Wimmer Associates 1 LLC Sells 195 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Wimmer Associates 1 LLC lowered its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 10,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 195 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up 1.2% of Wimmer Associates 1 LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Wimmer Associates 1 LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,349,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.8%

BDX stock opened at $175.37 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $50.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.13, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $163.33 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. The business has a fifty day moving average of $203.61 and a 200-day moving average of $220.72.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has authorized a stock 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 repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $192.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $231.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $105,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,598,960. The trade was a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93% 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 valued at $636,393 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.