Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC

Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 351 shares during the quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,215,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% in 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 purchasing an additional 20,859 shares during the period. Busey Bank boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,031,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 152,293 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $34,551,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Finally, Phraction Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Phraction Management LLC now owns 47,021 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $10,668,000 after purchasing an additional 3,138 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE:BDX opened at $175.32 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $206.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $222.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.12, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $251.99.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.35 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.17 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.39%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BDX. Barclays decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. StockNews.com cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $280.00 to $196.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, William Blair cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $231.44.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 459 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $105,570.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,598,960. This trade represents a 6.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total value of $94,497.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,878 shares of company stock valued at $636,393. 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.