Townsquare Capital LLC Buys 14,619 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Townsquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Free Report) by 31.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 61,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 14,619 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $13,989,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $39,951,000 after buying an additional 20,859 shares during the period. Busey Bank increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $15,031,000 after acquiring an additional 2,399 shares in the last quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $8,382,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $647,082,000 after acquiring an additional 673,568 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $279.00 to $261.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research 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 analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $275.71.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $3.69 on Tuesday, reaching $202.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,567,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,694,478. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $193.03 and a 52 week high of $251.99. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $222.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $229.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $58.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,377,840. The trade was a 8.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares in the company, valued at $1,311,211.44. The trade was a 9.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,675 shares of company stock worth $1,057,182. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

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.