Caprock Group LLC Purchases Shares of 7,023 Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,023 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,693,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,181,483,000 after acquiring an additional 302,893 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,146,374,000 after acquiring an additional 87,230 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,031,167,000 after acquiring an additional 346,720 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $697,513,000 after acquiring an additional 89,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $655,149,000 after purchasing an additional 688,296 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $222.41 on Thursday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $235.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $234.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $64.28 billion, a PE ratio of 37.44, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The firm's revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This is an increase 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 dividend yield of 1.87%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on BDX. Evercore ISI raised 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 note on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 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 note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised 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. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $283.00.

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.