Arizona State Retirement System Has $19.57 Million Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 0.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 83,754 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 664 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $19,574,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BDX shares. Raymond James dropped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $232.61 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.23 billion, a PE ratio of 51.24, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $234.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $235.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $269.52.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.96 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.70%.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.