Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Hits New 52-Week Low at $229.40

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) shares reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $229.40 and last traded at $231.63, with a volume of 865704 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $231.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.00.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $240.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $242.72. The stock has a market cap of $67.20 billion, a PE ratio of 54.74, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.29. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.98 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 90.05%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total transaction of $67,197.78. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 103,004 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $25,115,000 after acquiring an additional 22,207 shares during the period. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.1% in the third quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 16,640 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,302,000 after acquiring an additional 809 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 69.4% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,113 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,685,000 after acquiring an additional 6,190 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

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.