Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Stock Position Lifted by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 2.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 632,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,130 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.22% of Becton, Dickinson and Company worth $147,936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,123,450 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $6,369,681,000 after purchasing an additional 195,931 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 87,230 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 346,720 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.3% during the first 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 purchasing an additional 105,821 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Longview Partners Guernsey LTD grew its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 7.9% in the first quarter. Longview Partners Guernsey LTD now owns 2,321,435 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $574,439,000 after acquiring an additional 170,500 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BDX has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $231.58 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $235.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $235.54. 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 $269.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.01, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.08 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.96 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

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.