Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Shares Acquired by Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.

Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 55,709 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the quarter. Becton, Dickinson and Company makes up approximately 0.7% of Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $13,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $274.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $290.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup cut their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.50.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BDX opened at $234.63 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $67.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.68, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $218.75 and a one year high of $269.52. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $235.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $235.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.85.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.49% and a net margin of 7.13%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.70%.

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.