Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) Competitors

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) and Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) are both large-cap medical companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, community ranking, risk and media sentiment.

Which has more volatility and risk, ABT or BDX?

Abbott Laboratories has a beta of 0.7, meaning that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a beta of 0.35, meaning that its stock price is 65% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts prefer ABT or BDX?

Abbott Laboratories currently has a consensus target price of $137.94, suggesting a potential upside of 5.45%. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus target price of $278.29, suggesting a potential upside of 22.41%. Given Becton, Dickinson and Company's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Becton, Dickinson and Company is more favorable than Abbott Laboratories.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Abbott Laboratories	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	14 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.84
Becton, Dickinson and Company	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Is ABT or BDX a better dividend stock?

Abbott Laboratories pays an annual dividend of $2.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Becton, Dickinson and Company pays an annual dividend of $4.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Abbott Laboratories pays out 30.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Becton, Dickinson and Company pays out 69.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Abbott Laboratories has increased its dividend for 54 consecutive years and Becton, Dickinson and Company has increased its dividend for 53 consecutive years.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in ABT or BDX?

75.2% of Abbott Laboratories shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.0% of Becton, Dickinson and Company shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of Abbott Laboratories shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of Becton, Dickinson and Company shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media prefer ABT or BDX?

In the previous week, Abbott Laboratories had 17 more articles in the media than Becton, Dickinson and Company. MarketBeat recorded 64 mentions for Abbott Laboratories and 47 mentions for Becton, Dickinson and Company. Becton, Dickinson and Company's average media sentiment score of 1.42 beat Abbott Laboratories' score of 1.24 indicating that Becton, Dickinson and Company is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Abbott Laboratories	45 Very Positive mention(s)	5 Positive mention(s)	12 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Becton, Dickinson and Company	40 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has preferable valuation and earnings, ABT or BDX?

Abbott Laboratories has higher revenue and earnings than Becton, Dickinson and Company. Abbott Laboratories is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Becton, Dickinson and Company, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Abbott Laboratories	$41.95B	5.41	$13.40B	$7.65	17.10
Becton, Dickinson and Company	$20.64B	3.16	$1.71B	$6.02	37.76

Is ABT or BDX more profitable?

Abbott Laboratories has a net margin of 31.95% compared to Becton, Dickinson and Company's net margin of 8.47%. Abbott Laboratories' return on equity of 20.74% beat Becton, Dickinson and Company's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Abbott Laboratories	31.95%	20.74%	11.19%
Becton, Dickinson and Company	8.47%	15.74%	7.29%

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer ABT or BDX?

Abbott Laboratories received 345 more outperform votes than Becton, Dickinson and Company when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 69.97% of users gave Abbott Laboratories an outperform vote while only 62.34% of users gave Becton, Dickinson and Company an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Abbott Laboratories	Outperform Votes 946 69.97%	Underperform Votes 406 30.03%
Becton, Dickinson and Company	Outperform Votes 601 62.34%	Underperform Votes 363 37.66%

Summary

Abbott Laboratories beats Becton, Dickinson and Company on 16 of the 22 factors compared between the two stocks.