Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Sells 446 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lowered its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,270 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 446 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,260,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BDX. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board grew its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 242.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 1,783,769 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $461,158,000 after buying an additional 1,263,391 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,927,519 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $6,703,041,000 after purchasing an additional 516,427 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,192,832 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,342,503,000 after purchasing an additional 512,566 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 28.5% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,139,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $553,121,000 after purchasing an additional 473,914 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,200,213 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,637,062,000 after purchasing an additional 435,168 shares in the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,715 shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.81, for a total transaction of $399,269.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,252,750.61. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at $542,348.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Barclays lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $281.40.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

NYSE BDX traded up $1.90 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $236.58. 1,255,426 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,412,024. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $229.40 and a 1 year high of $287.32. The company has a market cap of $68.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $238.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $240.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.20. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.76% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The firm had revenue of $5.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.04 billion. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.86 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

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.