Courier Capital LLC Sells 211 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Courier Capital LLC lowered its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 211 shares during the quarter. Courier Capital LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,637,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $761,798,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,927,519 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,703,041,000 after purchasing an additional 516,427 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 28.5% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,139,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $553,121,000 after acquiring an additional 473,914 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.5% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,200,213 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,637,062,000 after acquiring an additional 435,168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 117.1% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 710,932 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $173,347,000 after acquiring an additional 383,485 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX opened at $233.71 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $67.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.44. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $224.00 and a 12-month high of $287.32.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 6.76%. The business had revenue of $5.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.86 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total value of $71,793.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.73, for a total value of $781,209.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,308 shares in the company, valued at $2,676,942.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,615 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,381. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.17.

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.