Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Holdings Decreased by Quadrature Capital Ltd

Quadrature Capital Ltd cut its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 75.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,028 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 54,318 shares during the quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter worth about $35,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on BDX shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.70, for a total value of $781,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,457,713.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,876.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,615 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,381 in the last 90 days. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.9 %

NYSE BDX traded up $4.52 on Friday, hitting $237.30. 1,384,408 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,257,695. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $232.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $236.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $286.46.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 6.76%. The company had revenue of $5.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.86 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

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 paid 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 1.60%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.70%.

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.