Hara Capital LLC Purchases Shares of 265 Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 265 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $64,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,181,483,000 after acquiring an additional 302,893 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.8% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,905,114 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,146,374,000 after acquiring an additional 87,230 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 8.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,412,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,031,167,000 after acquiring an additional 346,720 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.1% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,984,524 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $697,513,000 after acquiring an additional 89,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $655,149,000 after acquiring an additional 688,296 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 5.5 %

BDX stock opened at $226.97 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $237.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $235.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $257.58. The stock has a market cap of $65.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.43.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.04. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.11 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. This is a boost from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 78.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BDX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Raymond James decreased their price objective on 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. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $282.63.

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.