Long Road Investment Counsel LLC Has $3.66 Million Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Long Road Investment Counsel LLC cut its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 16,132 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for 1.5% of Long Road Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Long Road Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $3,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $401,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $39,951,000 after buying an additional 20,859 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $767,000. Busey Bank raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $15,031,000 after buying an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in 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 valued at $720,089,000 after buying an additional 1,317,723 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on BDX. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $278.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This trade represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $185,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,807,235. This represents a 4.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,363 shares of company stock worth $1,676,105 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $227.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $65.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $251.99. The business’s 50 day moving average is $232.72 and its 200-day moving average is $232.19.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.