Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Purchased by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 11.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $6,219,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BDX. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $231.27 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.94, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $235.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.57. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $269.52.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.70%.

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.