Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 314,650 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Clearbridge Investments LLC lessened its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,092,337 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 314,650 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $794,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Syon Capital LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 74.8% in the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 2,961 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,336,000. Havemeyer Place LP bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,098,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 795.0% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,262 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Thomas E. Polen, Jr. sold 2,764 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.35, for a total value of $404,511.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,122,355.05. The trade was a 2.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,913 shares of company stock valued at $426,806. 0.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on BDX shares. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $189.00 to $163.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Argus lowered their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $230.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $233.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $183.64.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX opened at $151.33 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $150.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $175.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.94. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $127.59 and a 52 week high of $187.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.70 billion, a PE ratio of 38.31, a P/E/G ratio of 10.70 and a beta of 0.22.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.13. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 5.33% and a return on equity of 15.37%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.35 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.520-12.720 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be issued a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 9th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is 106.33%.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.