Royal Bank Of Canada Upgrades Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) to “Hold”

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) was upgraded by equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on BDX. UBS Group began coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $161.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $161.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $185.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.3%

BDX stock opened at $176.53 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $154.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $162.51. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $127.59 and a 52 week high of $187.35. The company has a market cap of $48.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.17, a P/E/G ratio of 12.53 and a beta of 0.19.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.09. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 4.52% and a return on equity of 14.84%. The company had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.68 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.620-12.720 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Thomas E. Polen, Jr. sold 2,764 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.35, for a total value of $404,511.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,163 shares in the company, valued at $16,122,355.05. This represents a 2.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.66, for a total value of $160,226.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,172 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,918,633.52. The trade was a 7.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 5,189 shares of company stock valued at $765,661. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased 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 buying an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 627,900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $122,403,000 after acquiring an additional 26,671 shares during the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.2% during the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,126,471 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $218,614,000 after acquiring an additional 240,673 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.2% in the 4th quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 172,580 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $33,493,000 after purchasing an additional 65,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Third View Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $4,992,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Becton, Dickinson and Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Becton, Dickinson and Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results beat estimates. Fiscal Q3 revenue rose 5.4% year over year to approximately $5.0 billion, exceeding the $4.89 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS of $3.23 also surpassed expectations of $3.14, with growth across BD’s core medical and interventional businesses. BD Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: BD raised its fiscal 2026 outlook. The company now expects adjusted EPS of $12.62 to $12.72, above the prior outlook and the roughly $12.56 analyst consensus. Management also expects revenue growth toward the high end of its range and is targeting 90% free-cash-flow conversion. Year-to-date operating cash flow increased 33.3% to $2.1 billion, while free cash flow rose 44.6% to $1.7 billion. BD raises FY 2026 adjusted EPS guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup became more bullish. Citi raised its price target from $198 to $204 and assigned a “buy” rating, implying meaningful upside based on the cited reference price.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain divided. Piper Sandler lifted its target to $175 but maintained a “neutral” rating, while Wells Fargo raised its target to $170 and kept an “equal weight” rating. Both targets remain below the cited share price, limiting the positive impact of the revisions.
• Negative Sentiment: Margins and earnings comparisons are concerns. Although revenue and adjusted earnings beat forecasts, margins declined and adjusted EPS fell from $3.68 in the year-earlier quarter. The stock’s elevated valuation may also make investors more sensitive to profitability pressure.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD’s products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company’s operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD’s product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.