FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 795 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,577 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 795 shares during the quarter. FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BDX. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Raymond James reduced their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $237.22 on Tuesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $269.52. The firm has a market cap of $68.57 billion, a PE ratio of 52.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $235.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.96 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be given a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s 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.