Russell Investments Group Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 22.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 370,580 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 68,171 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.13% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $84,059,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $580,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Americana Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $345,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 142 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

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Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX traded up $2.30 during trading on Friday, reaching $201.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 597,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,678,240. The company has a market cap of $57.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.38, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $224.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.09. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $193.03 and a 1 year high of $251.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.10%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.51, for a total transaction of $141,196.47. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,311,211.44. This represents a 9.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard Byrd sold 1,940 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.91, for a total value of $436,325.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,411 shares in the company, valued at $1,666,808.01. This represents a 20.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,675 shares of company stock valued at $1,057,182. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BDX shares. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $275.71.

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.