Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) EVP Sells $120,000.00 in Stock

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,377,840. The trade was a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of BDX opened at $238.05 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market cap of $69.04 billion, a PE ratio of 40.08, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $248.42. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $227.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $232.79.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective 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. Finally, Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BDX. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $767,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $720,089,000 after buying an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $8,382,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 561,040 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $135,267,000 after buying an additional 12,845 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $647,082,000 after acquiring an additional 673,568 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.