Wesbanco Bank Inc. Increases Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 36.2% during the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,482 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 12.1% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 13,806 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,490 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 70.5% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,166 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,610,000 after purchasing an additional 4,617 shares during the last quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,191 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 34.7% in the 2nd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $362,000 after buying an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total value of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,371,469.53. This represents a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BDX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup raised Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $243.69 on Friday. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $227.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $232.88. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $248.42. The company has a market cap of $70.67 billion, a PE ratio of 41.02, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.42 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 70.03%.

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.