Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 3,500 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 71,340 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,500 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $16,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 44.2% in the third 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 raised its position 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 valued at $708,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Umpqua Bank raised 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 valued at $660,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, S.A. Mason LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Shana Carol Neal sold 788 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $185,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,201 shares in the company, valued at $3,807,235. This represents a 4.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,370,309 in the last quarter. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:BDX opened at $228.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $233.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $232.98. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a fifty-two week low of $218.75 and a fifty-two week high of $251.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $65.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.43 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 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 69.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.29.

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.