Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Short Interest Down 9.2% in September

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,480,000 shares, a decline of 9.2% from the September 15th total of 2,730,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,370,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Currently, 0.9% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of BDX stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $240.32. 964,407 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,395,821. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $262.23. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $236.74 and its 200-day moving average is $235.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $69.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.96 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 83.70%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.9% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 402,350 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $99,562,000 after acquiring an additional 18,786 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2,086.7% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 51,934 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $12,853,000 after buying an additional 49,559 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $11,998,000. Avity Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the first quarter. Avity Investment Management Inc. now owns 162,687 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,257,000 after buying an additional 5,527 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.2% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 59,422 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $14,481,000 after acquiring an additional 5,006 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. 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. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of 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. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.63.

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.