Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 273 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Kentucky Retirement Systems trimmed its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,863 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 273 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $4,506,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the period. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 176,097 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $39,951,000 after purchasing an additional 20,859 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $767,000. Busey Bank lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 66,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $15,031,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total transaction of $159,593.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 36,033 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,544 shares of company stock worth $2,370,309. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.2 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $227.54 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $251.99. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $232.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $233.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.80, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40.

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 the consensus estimate 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.