Howe & Rusling Inc. Purchases 8,976 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Howe & Rusling Inc. boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 41.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,785 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,976 shares during the period. Howe & Rusling Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $7,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,181,483,000 after acquiring an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,146,374,000 after purchasing an additional 87,230 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $697,513,000 after buying an additional 89,157 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $655,149,000 after buying an additional 688,296 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $222.73 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $249.89. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $235.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $234.80. 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 cap of $64.38 billion, a PE ratio of 37.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.87%. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased 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. Raymond James lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $283.00.

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.