Sterling Financial Planning Inc. Has $995,000 Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 189.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,081 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 2,672 shares during the quarter. Sterling Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $995,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. Sapient Capital LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 103,004 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,115,000 after acquiring an additional 22,207 shares during the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% in the third quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 16,640 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $4,302,000 after acquiring an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,685,000 after buying an additional 6,190 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $542,348.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BDX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays raised their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE BDX traded up $0.94 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $233.15. 891,562 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,406,878. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.04, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $240.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $242.65. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $229.40 and a twelve month high of $287.32.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 6.44%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.98 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 90.05%.

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.