Ninety One North America Inc. Cuts Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Ninety One North America Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 11.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,874 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 769 shares during the quarter. Ninety One North America Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,333,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 72.2% during the 4th quarter. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC now owns 3,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306 shares during the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $39,951,000 after acquiring an additional 20,859 shares during the last quarter. RBA Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. RBA Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,331 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,839,000 after acquiring an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $244,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.9 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $245.44 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $71.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.28, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $230.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.83.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its 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. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 70.03%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BDX shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,113,949.51. The trade was a 4.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total transaction of $633,810.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. This represents a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716 over the last three months. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.