GAMMA Investing LLC Boosts Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 132.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,883 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,072 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $440,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at $761,798,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 277.3% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,936,654 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $478,295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,423,353 shares during the period. M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $173,692,000. Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 117.1% in the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 710,932 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $173,347,000 after purchasing an additional 383,485 shares during the period. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $75,493,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.70, for a total value of $781,110.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,457,713.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.70, for a total transaction of $781,110.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,457,713.60. 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 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX traded up $5.86 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $241.87. 1,803,035 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,597,036. 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 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $284.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.28, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $232.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $236.30.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.57%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. Barclays upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Raymond James dropped their price objective 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. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.50.

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.