Sachetta LLC Reduces Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Sachetta LLC cut its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,033 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 94 shares during the quarter. Sachetta LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $250,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $761,798,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 141.6% in the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,345,873 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $314,544,000 after purchasing an additional 788,735 shares during the period. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the first quarter worth $173,692,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,031,167,000 after buying an additional 346,720 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 2.4 %

NYSE:BDX opened at $237.22 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average of $234.22 and a 200 day moving average of $235.82. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $269.52.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Raymond James reduced 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, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.