Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Acquires New Position in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,911 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $545,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,844 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 2,692 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $504,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC lifted its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 2.7% in the third quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 2,241 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional boosted its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 3.6% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,731 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Howland Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 1.9% during the third quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 3,346 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $626,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,610 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total value of $334,010.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,509,228.70. This represents a 11.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 953 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total value of $174,027.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 36,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,713,291.43. The trade was a 2.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 3,416 shares of company stock worth $675,557 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:BDX opened at $176.49 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $196.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $192.20. The stock has a market cap of $50.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 0.25. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a twelve month low of $127.59 and a twelve month high of $187.35.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 15.76%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.43 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.350-12.650 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 EPS for the current year.

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

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BDX shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $184.00 to $157.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $197.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.46.

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.