Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX Stake Trimmed by Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 99.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,570,350 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,691,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 15.4% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,308,749 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $5,565,182,000 after acquiring an additional 4,305,947 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $653,377,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 59.2% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 8,786,190 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,513,421,000 after purchasing an additional 3,268,478 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 24.4% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,514,446 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,466,613,000 after purchasing an additional 1,670,590 shares during the period. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the second quarter valued at $150,051,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $176.04 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $50.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 0.24. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $195.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $192.03. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $127.59 and a 52 week high of $187.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 15.76%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.43 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.350-12.650 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.52%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 27th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase up to 0% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BDX shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $233.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.46.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 953 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $174,027.33. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 36,763 shares in the company, valued at $6,713,291.43. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,610 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total value of $334,010.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,509,228.70. This trade represents a 11.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 3,416 shares of company stock worth $674,693 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Profile

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD’s products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company’s operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD’s product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.