Seven Eight Capital LP Invests $1.98 Million in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 8,465 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $1,978,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BDX. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 632,659 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $147,936,000 after acquiring an additional 14,130 shares during the period. Shariaportfolio Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Shariaportfolio Inc. now owns 8,163 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,908,000 after acquiring an additional 846 shares during the period. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 24,280 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $5,675,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 120.2% during the 2nd quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 162,320 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $37,936,000 after acquiring an additional 88,600 shares during the period. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.3% during the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 26,608 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,219,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.1 %

Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $231.58 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $235.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.54. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $218.75 and a 1 year high of $269.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market cap of $66.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.01, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on BDX. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of 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. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.50.

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.