Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) is AMI Asset Management Corp’s 8th Largest Position

AMI Asset Management Corp reduced its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 304,481 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 17,728 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company comprises 3.7% of AMI Asset Management Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. AMI Asset Management Corp’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $69,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $720,089,000 after buying an additional 1,317,723 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in 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 worth $647,082,000 after acquiring an additional 673,568 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,293,635,000 after purchasing an additional 460,440 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $108,243,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 62.2% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,107,317 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $266,974,000 after purchasing an additional 424,487 shares during the period. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total value of $633,810.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,141 shares in the company, valued at $1,371,469.53. The trade was a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,113,949.51. This trade represents a 4.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,747 shares of company stock valued at $1,949,520 over the last three months. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of 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. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX stock opened at $237.57 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $68.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $227.13 and its 200 day moving average is $232.70. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $248.42. 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 (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.42 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.04 dividend. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.