Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) PT Lowered to $270.00 at Raymond James

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at Raymond James from $275.00 to $270.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Raymond James’ price target indicates a potential upside of 12.37% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of BDX traded up $4.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $240.27. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 998,142 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,455,596. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company’s 50-day moving average is $232.64 and its 200-day moving average is $236.24. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $284.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.84, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.73, for a total transaction of $781,209.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,676,942.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.73, for a total transaction of $781,209.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,676,942.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,876.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 6,900 shares of company stock worth $1,634,112. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at $761,798,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 277.3% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,936,654 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $478,295,000 after buying an additional 1,423,353 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 141.6% during the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,345,873 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $314,544,000 after acquiring an additional 788,735 shares during the period. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $173,692,000. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 117.1% in the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 710,932 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $173,347,000 after acquiring an additional 383,485 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.