Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Approves Stock Repurchase Plan

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th, RTT News reports. The company plans to buyback 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE BDX opened at $249.75 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $72.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.05, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.39. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $218.75 and a 12 month high of $250.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $228.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $233.31.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.00.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, EVP Roland Goette sold 4,483 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.01, for a total value of $990,787.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,380,488.45. This represents a 15.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP David Shan sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,741 shares in the company, valued at $1,377,840. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,844 shares of company stock worth $2,210,716. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.