Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Buys 1,567 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 30,359 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,567 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $7,402,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 103,004 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $25,115,000 after purchasing an additional 22,207 shares in the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% during the third quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 16,640 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,302,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,685,000 after purchasing an additional 6,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 714,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $174,122,000 after purchasing an additional 7,790 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $234.12 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.64 billion, a PE ratio of 55.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $240.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $242.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $229.40 and a 1-year high of $287.32.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio 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.