Hopwood Financial Services Inc. Makes New $39,000 Investment in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 170 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $39,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 54.1% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 208 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 174.4% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE BDX opened at $223.95 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.20, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.35. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $251.99. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $232.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $232.51. 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 (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 69.10%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on 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 increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $185,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,807,235. This trade represents a 4.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,423 shares of company stock worth $1,239,780. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

About Becton, Dickinson and Company

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.