Ballentine Partners LLC Sells 616 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Ballentine Partners LLC lessened its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 17.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,964 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 616 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $693,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $211,000. Ieq Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 6,900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,682,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,053 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,476,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the period. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,000. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $383,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $237.22 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $235.82. 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 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $269.52. The firm has a market cap of $68.57 billion, a PE ratio of 52.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 83.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BDX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Raymond James lowered their target price 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 reduced their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. One investment 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.50.

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.