Avior Wealth Management LLC Acquires 847 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,769 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 847 shares during the quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,989,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp lifted its holdings 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 boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 35.8% in 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 period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth $46,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. One investment 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 has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX stock opened at $240.21 on Friday. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $218.75 and a twelve month high of $248.42. The firm has a market cap of $69.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.44, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $227.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $232.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.42 EPS. Analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.