Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Sold by Forbes J M & Co. LLP

Forbes J M & Co. LLP cut its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 34,872 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,032 shares during the quarter. Forbes J M & Co. LLP’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $8,408,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in 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 worth $1,181,483,000 after purchasing an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,146,374,000 after acquiring an additional 87,230 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,031,167,000 after acquiring an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $697,513,000 after acquiring an additional 89,157 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $655,149,000 after acquiring an additional 688,296 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.9 %

BDX stock traded up $2.05 during trading on Monday, reaching $240.18. 136,124 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,374,259. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $237.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $259.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.41 billion, a PE ratio of 52.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BDX. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on 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. Raymond James dropped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $282.63.

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.