Mizuho Markets Americas LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Mizuho Markets Americas LLC lowered its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 10.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 23,763 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 2,748 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $5,729,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the second quarter valued at $45,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Raymond James decreased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE BDX opened at $225.15 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $65.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.90, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $236.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $234.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. 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 (DPR) is presently 70.03%.

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.