Vanguard Group Inc. Has $5.57 Billion Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 15.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,308,749 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 4,305,947 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.27% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $5,565,182,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 42.3% during the second quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 1,581 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Nordwand Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,340,000. Chiron Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 662.4% during the 2nd quarter. Chiron Capital Management LLC now owns 10,704 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,844,000 after purchasing an additional 9,300 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 728 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Poehling Capital Management INC. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the second quarter valued at $1,408,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 217 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.58, for a total transaction of $38,317.86. Following the transaction, the director owned 35,816 shares in the company, valued at $6,324,389.28. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Claire Fraser sold 917 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.50, for a total value of $171,937.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 22,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,167,375. This represents a 3.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,249 shares of company stock worth $231,358. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on BDX. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Argus upped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $224.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $172.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $203.27.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $192.26 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $162.29 and a 52 week high of $251.99. The company has a market capitalization of $55.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.58, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $186.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $181.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 14th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The firm had revenue of $5.32 billion during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th will be paid a $1.05 dividend. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.04. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 8th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.04%.

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.