Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Stock Position Raised by Northcape Wealth Management LLC

Northcape Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,694 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 139 shares during the quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,867 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,415,000 after buying an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 9,970 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,404,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 56,923 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $13,717,000 after acquiring an additional 2,824 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 57.0% in the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 67,357 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $16,240,000 after purchasing an additional 24,468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.2% during the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,636 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,841,000 after purchasing an additional 642 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James dropped their target price 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. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX opened at $225.15 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $65.08 billion, a PE ratio of 37.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $236.30 and a 200-day moving average of $234.99. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its 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. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 63.97%.

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.