Whitener Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Whitener Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,700 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 275 shares during the period. Whitener Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 22.5% in the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 245 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC now owns 11,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,838,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 2,937 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $708,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at $3,807,235. This represents a 4.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,747 shares of company stock worth $1,949,520 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $237.57 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $248.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $226.95 and a 200 day moving average of $232.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $1.04 dividend. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

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.