Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Purchases 154 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,898 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,741,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in 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 worth $3,364,096,000 after acquiring an additional 106,616 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in 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 worth $1,510,050,000 after acquiring an additional 111,101 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in 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 worth $1,293,635,000 after acquiring an additional 460,440 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after acquiring an additional 1,317,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BDX. StockNews.com lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,807,235. The trade was a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,544 shares of company stock worth $2,370,309 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $225.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $218.75 and a 12-month high of $251.99. The company has a market capitalization of $64.77 billion, a PE ratio of 37.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $233.08 and its 200-day moving average is $233.05.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 15.74%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.