Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC Makes New $203,000 Investment in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 893 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $243.69 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $228.08 and its 200-day moving average is $233.08. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $248.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $70.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. 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 yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BDX shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price target 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Roland Goette sold 638 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.03, for a total transaction of $139,741.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,217 shares in the company, valued at $3,113,949.51. This trade represents a 4.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 2,838 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.33, for a total value of $633,810.54. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,141 shares in the company, valued at $1,371,469.53. The trade was a 31.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,844 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,716. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.