Park Avenue Securities LLC Reduces Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Park Avenue Securities LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 21.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,058 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 569 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $509,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 1,852,278 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $451,641,000 after acquiring an additional 68,509 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 103,004 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,115,000 after purchasing an additional 22,207 shares in the last quarter. Caden Capital Partners LP raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Caden Capital Partners LP now owns 83,417 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $20,340,000 after purchasing an additional 17,599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,685,000 after purchasing an additional 6,190 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.2 %

BDX opened at $233.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $67.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.48, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $224.00 and a 12 month high of $287.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $234.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $237.84.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.86 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price for the company. 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 report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $280.17.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,715 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.81, for a total transaction of $399,269.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,252,750.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,715 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.81, for a total transaction of $399,269.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,252,750.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.70, for a total value of $781,110.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 8,615 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,381 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.