Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases New Shares in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 799,042 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $181,279,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC grew its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Novare Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC now owns 1,110 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at $1,377,840. This trade represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey William Henderson acquired 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,015 shares in the company, valued at $1,872,464.30. The trade was a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,061 shares of company stock worth $1,379,521 in the last ninety days. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 1.8 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $229.51 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $232.98 and its 200-day moving average is $232.73. 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 $218.75 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The company has a market cap of $65.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.12, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35.

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 (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%. On average, equities analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 69.10%.

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.