National Bank of Canada FI Buys 231,877 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 98.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 467,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 231,877 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned about 0.16% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $106,098,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $735,523,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,426,022 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,004,132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,057,879 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $181,279,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $647,082,000 after buying an additional 673,568 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,782,894 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $404,485,000 after buying an additional 348,335 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $226.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $231.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $231.62. The firm has a market cap of $64.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.55, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, Director Jeffrey William Henderson purchased 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $233.62 per share, with a total value of $350,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,464.30. This represents a 23.02 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at $3,807,235. This represents a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,984 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,865. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.