Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC Buys 279 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 0.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,476 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company accounts for 1.3% of Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $7,589,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 9.4% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,365,554 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,293,635,000 after purchasing an additional 460,440 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,181,483,000 after purchasing an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,031,167,000 after purchasing an additional 346,720 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 79.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,986,543 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $720,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $697,513,000 after buying an additional 89,157 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $224.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $235.15 and a 200 day moving average of $234.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $64.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $249.89.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $1.04 dividend. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BDX. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $283.00.

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.