Phraction Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Phraction Management LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 43,883 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,276 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up about 3.7% of Phraction Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Phraction Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $10,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 30.2% in the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,051 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,735,000 after buying an additional 2,565 shares during the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 225.9% during the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 7,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,924,000 after purchasing an additional 5,389 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 380.8% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 58,923 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $14,580,000 after purchasing an additional 46,668 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.6% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 280,193 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $69,334,000 after purchasing an additional 37,851 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.9% during the second quarter. M&G Plc now owns 709,259 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $165,967,000 after purchasing an additional 6,052 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James cut their target price 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. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $225.15 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $249.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.08 billion, a PE ratio of 37.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $236.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $234.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

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.