Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC cut its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 61.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,663 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,608 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $389,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in 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 valued at $99,562,000 after purchasing an additional 18,786 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2,086.7% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 51,934 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $12,853,000 after purchasing an additional 49,559 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter worth approximately $11,998,000. Finally, Avity Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 5,527 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Raymond James lowered their target price 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, StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One 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 presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of BDX opened at $234.18 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $234.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.64. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $269.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.58, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.