BSW Wealth Partners Decreases Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

BSW Wealth Partners reduced its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 23.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 929 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 283 shares during the period. BSW Wealth Partners’ holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at about $114,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.3% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,923 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.8% during the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,383 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.0% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 504 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 26.0% during the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,346 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $358,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $241.71 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $69.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.28, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $229.85 and a 52 week high of $287.32. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $240.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $243.74. 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 (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.98 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.05%.

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.