GSA Capital Partners LLP Takes Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 1,898 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $458,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BDX. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 141.6% during the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,345,873 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $314,544,000 after buying an additional 788,735 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 32.5% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,803,255 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $655,149,000 after buying an additional 688,296 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 346,720 shares during the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $75,493,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 6.4% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,055,354 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,181,483,000 after purchasing an additional 302,893 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BDX opened at $222.41 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $235.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $234.72. The firm has a market cap of $64.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $218.75 and a 52 week high of $249.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BDX. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James decreased their price objective on 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

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.