Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Receives Average Rating of "Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Buy" by the six research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $283.50.

BDX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI upped their target price 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. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total transaction of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. The trade was a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,764,340. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $720,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 688,296 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $647,082,000 after acquiring an additional 673,568 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,293,635,000 after acquiring an additional 460,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $108,243,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX stock traded up $1.89 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $234.04. The company had a trading volume of 2,192,833 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,728,167. The firm has a market cap of $67.87 billion, a PE ratio of 39.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $226.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $232.45. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $249.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17.

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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company's revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.42 EPS. Sell-side 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. 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.