Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 642 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,636 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 642 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,841,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock 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 stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $227.23 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $249.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $236.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $235.10. The firm has a market cap of $65.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.43.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 63.97%.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.