Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp Sells 1,117 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lowered its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,823 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,117 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 111,101 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after purchasing an additional 460,440 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,053,416 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $692,729,000 after purchasing an additional 66,873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,844,566 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $647,082,000 after purchasing an additional 673,568 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,377,840. The trade was a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total value of $159,593.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,061 shares of company stock valued at $1,379,521 in the last 90 days. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $229.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $65.90 billion, a PE ratio of 38.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. 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 $232.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $232.72. 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 (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase 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. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Becton, Dickinson and 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.