Exeter Financial LLC Buys New Stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Exeter Financial LLC bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 835 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 1st quarter worth $38,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the second quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Abound Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 96.0% during the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 196 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped 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 report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $282.63.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of BDX opened at $237.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.63 billion, a PE ratio of 52.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.42. 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 quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.85. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $236.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.54.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $4.99 billion for 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.