Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Sells 1,032,608 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD decreased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,314,136 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,032,608 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned about 3.95% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $2,591,617,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.1% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,126,707 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,751,187,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219,317 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $689,833,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 392.4% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,416,665 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $775,139,000 after buying an additional 2,722,829 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,002,802 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,414,322,000 after buying an additional 1,259,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter worth $211,097,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX opened at $199.2480 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.11 billion, a PE ratio of 35.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $179.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $196.25. 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.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.28. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 7.51%.The company had revenue of $5.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.50 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.50 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.300-14.450 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.82%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Claire Fraser sold 863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.30, for a total transaction of $165,954.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 23,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,450,398.90. This represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.29, for a total value of $213,643.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $881,077.23. This trade represents a 19.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,214 shares of company stock valued at $579,206. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $217.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. William Blair downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $261.00 to $241.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $211.44.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.