Scarborough Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 129 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $32,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 552.0% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.70, for a total value of $781,110.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,608 shares in the company, valued at $3,457,713.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,615 shares of company stock worth $2,033,381 over the last three months. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on BDX. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $280.17.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.4 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $233.74 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $224.00 and a 1-year high of $287.32. The company has a market cap of $67.55 billion, a PE ratio of 51.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $234.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $237.86.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 6.76%. The firm had revenue of $5.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.70%.

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.