Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Quantbot Technologies LP

Quantbot Technologies LP reduced its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 23.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,083 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 7,060 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $5,565,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at $46,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI increased 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 research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James dropped 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 report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $224.20 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $249.89. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $234.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $234.40. The firm has a market cap of $64.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.43.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

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