Strengthening Families & Communities LLC Sells 10,771 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Strengthening Families & Communities LLC decreased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 90.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,123 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 10,771 shares during the quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake 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 worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Birch Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.4% in the third quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC now owns 11,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,838,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the third quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 2,937 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $708,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on BDX shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $229.35 on Tuesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $251.99. The firm has a market cap of $66.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $232.07 and a 200-day moving average of $234.02.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. Sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,380,488.45. This trade represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $233.62 per share, for a total transaction of $350,430.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 8,015 shares in the company, valued at $1,872,464.30. This represents a 23.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

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.