Ballentine Partners LLC Has $797,000 Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $797,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,953,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,364,096,000 after acquiring an additional 106,616 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,510,050,000 after purchasing an additional 111,101 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after buying an additional 460,440 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,181,483,000 after buying an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after buying an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $238.05 on Thursday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $248.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $227.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $232.79.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 70.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BDX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup raised 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 report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.50.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company 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.