Granite Investment Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Granite Investment Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 250 shares during the quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,976,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $401,000 after buying an additional 877 shares during the period. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% in the fourth 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 period. Busey Bank lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,031,000 after acquiring an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Centre Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth $8,382,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $647,082,000 after purchasing an additional 673,568 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.28, for a total transaction of $94,497.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $964,107.36. The trade was a 8.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This trade represents a 8.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,675 shares of company stock worth $1,057,182. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.71.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $201.54 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $57.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $223.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $229.81. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $193.03 and a 52-week high of $251.99. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.10%.

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.