Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 509 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Federated Hermes Inc. reduced its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,945 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 509 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,727,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock opened at $234.63 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $67.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $235.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $235.54. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $269.52.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on 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. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, 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 note on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.