Prio Wealth Limited Partnership Sells 9,354 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX)

Prio Wealth Limited Partnership cut its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 135,034 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 9,354 shares during the quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $31,559,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

BDX opened at $241.66 on Wednesday. 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 has a 52-week low of $218.75 and a 52-week high of $269.52. The firm has a market cap of $69.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $236.50 and its 200-day moving average is $235.54.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.19. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.13% and a return on equity of 14.49%. The firm had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.96 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 13.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on BDX. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup upgraded Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $275.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Becton, Dickinson and Company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.63.

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.