Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Boston Trust Walden Corp

Boston Trust Walden Corp decreased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 6.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 355,955 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 25,493 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned about 0.12% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $85,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. Abound Wealth Management grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 96.0% in the 2nd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 196 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1,233.3% in the second quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup raised shares of 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 research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Raymond James lowered their target price 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $282.63.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX traded down $0.49 on Friday, reaching $238.13. 1,001,988 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,380,241. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The company's 50-day moving average price is $237.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $235.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.82 billion, a PE ratio of 52.45, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $259.92.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.96 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.