Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Acquired by Aprio Wealth Management LLC

Aprio Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 33.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,162 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 294 shares during the quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $264,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 22.5% during the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 245 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% during the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.4% in the third quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC now owns 11,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,838,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the third quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 2,937 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $708,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on BDX shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $185,180.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at $3,807,235. The trade was a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. This trade represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 8,747 shares of company stock worth $1,949,520. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $236.29 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $248.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $226.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $232.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.42 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

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.