Congress Asset Management Co. Reduces Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Congress Asset Management Co. cut its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 15.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,753 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 320 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 3rd 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,285,513 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,510,050,000 after buying an additional 111,101 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,293,635,000 after buying an additional 460,440 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after acquiring an additional 1,317,723 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% in the 4th 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. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,380,488.45. This trade represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total transaction of $633,810.54. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,469.53. The trade was a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock worth $2,370,309. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $225.11 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $232.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.54. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $64.64 billion, a PE ratio of 37.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.