State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 7,896 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 7.6% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 96,102 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 7,896 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $22,013,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 75.3% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 341.4% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective (up previously from $185.00) on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $211.44.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $195.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $178.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $197.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.20.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $5.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.50 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.50 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Claire Fraser sold 863 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.30, for a total transaction of $165,954.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 23,143 shares in the company, valued at $4,450,398.90. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David Shan sold 1,166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total value of $199,607.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $783,194.25. This represents a 20.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,214 shares of company stock worth $579,206 in the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.