Avior Wealth Management LLC Has $1.91 Million Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,922 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $1,910,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. West Family Investments Inc. boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 1,079 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Horan Capital Advisors LLC. bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter valued at $203,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth $15,080,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth $201,000. Finally, BIP Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at $223,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of BDX opened at $222.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $64.38 billion, a PE ratio of 37.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $249.89. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $235.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $234.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 14.89%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.42 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This is an increase from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BDX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James cut their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $283.00.

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.