Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 484 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC reduced its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 11.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,615 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 484 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $882,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Grimes & Company Inc. boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 1,615 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $394,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. Mcdaniel Terry & Co. grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Mcdaniel Terry & Co. now owns 84,005 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $20,483,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,234 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Augustine Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,015 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,467,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 5,727 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,396,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $246.17 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $240.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $243.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.12 billion, a PE ratio of 58.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $229.85 and a 12 month high of $287.32.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.29. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.98 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.05%.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at $542,348.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.00.

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.