CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Has $59.19 Million Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co cut its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 239,067 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 4,417 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned 0.08% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $59,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,685,000 after purchasing an additional 6,190 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 3,121 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $761,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,754 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $672,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 5,920 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,444,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 43.9% in the 4th quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 508 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $472,876.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,876.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.70, for a total value of $781,110.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,457,713.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,615 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,381. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.14.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX stock traded up $3.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $237.34. The company had a trading volume of 1,218,022 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,425,095. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market cap of $68.59 billion, a PE ratio of 52.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $286.46. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $232.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.27.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The company had revenue of $5.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.86 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

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.