Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $49.95 Million Stock Holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 317,701 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,214 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $49,952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BDX. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 95.6% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 64.2% during the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 156 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, CEO Thomas E. Polen, Jr. sold 2,764 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.35, for a total value of $404,511.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,122,355.05. The trade was a 2.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.66, for a total value of $160,226.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,172 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,918,633.52. This trade represents a 7.71% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,188 shares of company stock valued at $765,120. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock opened at $158.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $148.99 and a 200-day moving average of $166.39. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52-week low of $127.59 and a 52-week high of $187.35. The stock has a market cap of $43.57 billion, a PE ratio of 40.04, a PEG ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.21.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.67 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 5.33% and a return on equity of 15.37%. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.35 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.520-12.720 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.62 EPS for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th were given a $1.05 dividend. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 9th. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is presently 106.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on BDX. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $170.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $230.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Evercore set a $180.00 target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $177.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, June 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $180.29.

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.