Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC Sells 1,056 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC lessened its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 30,572 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,056 shares during the period. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up 1.2% of Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $6,936,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 167 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $243.69 on Monday. 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 has a market cap of $70.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $248.42. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $228.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $233.15.

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. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $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, research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total value of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,377,840. This trade represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total transaction of $990,787.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. This trade represents a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

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.