CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC Invests $1.13 Million in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 4,690 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $1,131,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BDX. Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. 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. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James reduced their price objective on 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.6 %

BDX stock traded down $1.45 on Friday, hitting $224.00. 1,677,611 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,706,772. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $249.89. The business's fifty day moving average is $235.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $234.56.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Becton, Dickinson and Company's payout ratio is presently 63.97%.

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.