Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP

L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP cut its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,775 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,406 shares during the period. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $6,755,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BDX. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,953,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,364,096,000 after buying an additional 106,616 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,510,050,000 after acquiring an additional 111,101 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 460,440 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 673,568 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.0 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $229.50 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $251.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $232.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $233.99. The stock has a market cap of $66.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. 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, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $233.62 per share, with a total value of $350,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,872,464.30. This represents a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716 over the last ninety days. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.