Victory Capital Management Inc. Acquires 5,519 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 125,972 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,519 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $30,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 242.8% in the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 1,783,769 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $461,158,000 after buying an additional 1,263,391 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,927,519 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,703,041,000 after acquiring an additional 516,427 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,192,832 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,342,503,000 after acquiring an additional 512,566 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 28.5% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,139,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $553,121,000 after purchasing an additional 473,914 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.5% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,200,213 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,637,062,000 after purchasing an additional 435,168 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total transaction 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related 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 transaction 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 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 1,715 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.81, for a total value of $399,269.15. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,252,750.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $237.14 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $238.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $239.97. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $229.40 and a 52-week high of $287.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $5.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.04 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $281.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company 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.