West Tower Group LLC Purchases New Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

West Tower Group LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,100 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $265,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth $33,000. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its stake in 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. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on BDX shares. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $283.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $225.48 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $234.98 and its 200-day moving average is $234.48. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1-year low of $218.75 and a 1-year high of $249.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $65.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.42 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.03%.

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.