Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH Purchases 100,684 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 14.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 796,195 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 100,684 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for approximately 1.1% of Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $180,633,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,953,116 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,364,096,000 after purchasing an additional 106,616 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,510,050,000 after purchasing an additional 111,101 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after buying an additional 460,440 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,181,483,000 after buying an additional 302,893 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after buying an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $240.19 on Wednesday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $248.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $69.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $227.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $232.70.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 597 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,311,211.44. The trade was a 9.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,344 shares of company stock worth $2,090,716 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on BDX. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company 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.