M.D. Sass LLC Purchases Shares of 185,207 Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

M.D. Sass LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 185,207 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $44,653,000. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for approximately 3.3% of M.D. Sass LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. M.D. Sass LLC owned 0.06% of Becton, Dickinson and Company as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.9% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,850 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $953,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 96,125.0% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,849 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $952,000 after acquiring an additional 3,845 shares in the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,296,000. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 7,435 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,840,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 8,511 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,200,000 after purchasing an additional 847 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James cut their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX traded down $2.15 on Tuesday, reaching $223.33. The stock had a trading volume of 210,515 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,408,567. The stock has a market cap of $64.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $249.89. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $234.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $234.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.03%.

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.