Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Now Covered by Analysts at Citigroup

Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $233.00 price target on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $197.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $213.36.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

Shares of BDX stock opened at $206.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.40, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.25. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a one year low of $162.29 and a one year high of $246.75. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $198.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $191.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.92 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 16.42% and a net margin of 7.68%.Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.81 earnings per share. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.750-15.050 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 27th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to buy up to 0% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 72.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 217 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.58, for a total transaction of $38,317.86. Following the transaction, the director owned 35,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,324,389.28. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,610 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total transaction of $334,010.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,095 shares in the company, valued at $2,509,228.70. This trade represents a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 2,680 shares of company stock valued at $539,848. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,678,939 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,118,282,000 after purchasing an additional 4,223,149 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,872,395 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $2,596,496,000 after buying an additional 459,219 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 13.8% in the third quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 9,994,408 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,870,653,000 after buying an additional 1,208,218 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,486,694 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,841,083,000 after buying an additional 336,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,723,702 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,153,157,000 after acquiring an additional 244,199 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Company Profile

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells a broad range of medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. BD’s products are used by healthcare institutions, clinical laboratories, life science researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to enable safe, effective delivery of care, specimen collection and diagnostic testing. The company’s operations span multiple business areas focused on medical devices, life sciences research tools and interventional technologies.

BD’s product portfolio includes single-use medical devices such as syringes, needles, needlesafety and injection systems, infusion therapy and medication management solutions, as well as vascular access, urology and oncology devices acquired through its interventional business.