Centaurus Financial Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Centaurus Financial Inc. cut its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,367 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 59 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BDX. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% during the third quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 7,751 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,869,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 150,838 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $36,367,000 after purchasing an additional 2,729 shares during the last quarter. Pitcairn Co. lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 142.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 3,896 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $939,000 after purchasing an additional 2,292 shares during the period. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.9% in the third quarter. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC now owns 31,476 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,589,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 25.8% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 84,998 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $20,493,000 after buying an additional 17,444 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX opened at $224.20 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a fifty day moving average of $234.83 and a 200 day moving average of $234.40. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.42 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 70.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BDX. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.00.

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.