Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Stake Raised by Choreo LLC

Choreo LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 414.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,138 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,139 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,180,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in 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 buying an additional 68,509 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.9% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 402,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $99,562,000 after acquiring an additional 18,786 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2,086.7% during the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 51,934 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $12,853,000 after acquiring an additional 49,559 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at $11,998,000. Finally, Avity Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the first quarter. Avity Investment Management Inc. now owns 162,687 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,257,000 after purchasing an additional 5,527 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.8 %

BDX stock opened at $235.56 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50-day moving average of $234.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $235.73. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $269.52. 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 (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.96 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BDX. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of 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. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently 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.