Swedbank AB Makes New Investment in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 144,672 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $35,799,000. Swedbank AB owned 0.05% of Becton, Dickinson and Company as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the completion of 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the completion of 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.73, for a total transaction of $781,209.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,676,942.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 6,900 shares of company stock valued at $1,634,112 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock opened at $241.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $284.48. The stock has a market cap of $69.90 billion, a PE ratio of 53.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $232.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.28.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The business had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.70%.

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.