2,607 Shares in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Acquired by McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC

McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,607 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $591,000. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for 0.2% of McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ieq Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 22.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 9,238 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $2,159,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 55.7% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 436,183 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $101,940,000 after buying an additional 155,990 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 80.3% during the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,308 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $3,110,000 after buying an additional 5,926 shares during the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.2% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,482 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $580,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 222,580 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $52,016,000 after acquiring an additional 15,193 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on BDX shares. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $283.50.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at $5,380,488.45. This trade represents a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $185,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,807,235. The trade was a 4.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,747 shares of company stock worth $1,949,520. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded up $1.27 during trading on Friday, hitting $237.57. 2,110,686 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,714,162. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $248.42. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $227.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $232.61. The firm has a market cap of $68.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. 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 company earned $3.42 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.03%.

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.