State Street Corp Reduces Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

State Street Corp lowered its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 4.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,413,176 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 579,464 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 4.68% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $2,310,420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $123,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $211,097,000. Maia Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 1,243 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AIA Group Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 187.8% during the first quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 4,066 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $931,000 after purchasing an additional 2,653 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.58, for a total value of $38,317.86. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 35,816 shares in the company, valued at $6,324,389.28. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 407 shares of company stock worth $73,922 over the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $197.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $211.00 to $202.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Argus upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $204.45.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $188.76 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $53.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.25. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $162.29 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $188.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $184.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 14th. The medical instruments supplier reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $5.32 billion during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.68% and a return on equity of 16.42%. On average, sell-side 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 8th. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.04. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.04%.

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.