Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Sells 446 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. decreased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 4.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,790 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 446 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,522,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,123,450 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,369,681,000 after acquiring an additional 195,931 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,031,167,000 after acquiring an additional 346,720 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,154,438 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $769,147,000 after acquiring an additional 19,200 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $761,798,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,539,663 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $628,440,000 after buying an additional 105,821 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 300 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.31, for a total transaction of $71,793.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $472,876.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BDX. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE BDX traded up $1.37 on Friday, hitting $242.34. 893,412 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,416,639. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $233.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $236.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $283.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.70%.

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.