HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Buys 465 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,728 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. S.A. Mason LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $694,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $345,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total transaction of $436,325.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,411 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,666,808.01. This trade represents a 20.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total transaction of $141,196.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares in the company, valued at $1,311,211.44. The trade was a 9.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,984 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,865 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.8 %

BDX opened at $229.37 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $231.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $231.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.10, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BDX. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.