AlphaCentric Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 3,930 Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

AlphaCentric Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,930 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $892,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 150 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 2,937 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $708,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 2,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Umpqua Bank grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 2,738 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $660,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Americana Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of BDX opened at $224.89 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $232.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $233.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $251.99. The company has a market cap of $65.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.36, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 8.47%. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 69.10%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,380,488.45. The trade was a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 700 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.99, for a total value of $159,593.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 36,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,215,163.67. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on BDX. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $278.29.

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.