Hickory Point Bank & Trust Buys Shares of 1,742 Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Hickory Point Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,742 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $395,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 39,453 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $8,951,000 after buying an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2,241.7% during the fourth quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 26,250 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $5,955,000 after acquiring an additional 25,129 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 4,941 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 11,362 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,578,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at $1,308,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, 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 research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson acquired 1,500 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,464.30. This represents a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,807,235. This represents a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $225.57 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $233.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.02. The company has a market capitalization of $64.77 billion, a PE ratio of 37.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.10%.

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

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.