Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Purchased by Assetmark Inc.

Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,888 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after purchasing an additional 2,204 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $8,170,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during the second 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 grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $1,146,374,000 after acquiring an additional 87,230 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 346,720 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 89,157 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% during the second 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. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BDX. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Raymond James dropped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX stock traded down $3.35 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $231.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,186,856 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,402,289. The stock has a market cap of $66.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.43. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $236.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $235.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.03%.

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.