Gilbert & Cook Inc. Purchases New Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Gilbert & Cook Inc. purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 2,685 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $647,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 141.6% during 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 acquiring an additional 788,735 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $655,149,000 after acquiring an additional 688,296 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth $108,243,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased 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 worth $1,031,167,000 after acquiring an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter worth $75,493,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $225.15 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The business has a 50-day moving average of $236.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $234.99. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.42 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 63.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.00.

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.