Clarius Group LLC Sells 261 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Clarius Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,390 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 261 shares during the quarter. Clarius Group LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BDX. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $1,646,000. Syon Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Northwest Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $151,000. Finally, Willner & Heller LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $291,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on BDX. Raymond James decreased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.63.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $236.50 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $262.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.09, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.85. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $236.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.38.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

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.