First Eagle Investment Management LLC Has $655.15 Million Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 32.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 688,296 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for 1.5% of First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $655,149,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 277.3% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,936,654 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $478,295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,423,353 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 141.6% in the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,345,873 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $314,544,000 after buying an additional 788,735 shares during the period. M&G Plc bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth approximately $173,692,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,031,167,000 after buying an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at approximately $75,493,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $231.58 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.93 billion, a PE ratio of 51.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $269.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $235.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $235.54.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. The business 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.96 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 83.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James dropped 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 research report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.50.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.