Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest
Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,990,000 shares, an increase of 31.7% from the October 31st total of 2,270,000 shares. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,280,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.
Insider Activity
In other news, EVP Richard Byrd sold 2,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.47, for a total transaction of $514,141.32. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $982,496.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Becton, Dickinson and Company
A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 23,794,080 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $5,889,987,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281,866 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,762,618 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,369,459,000 after purchasing an additional 76,244 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,200,213 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $2,637,062,000 after purchasing an additional 435,168 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 98,105.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 6,929,375 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,829,424,000 after purchasing an additional 6,922,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,192,832 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,342,503,000 after purchasing an additional 512,566 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.72% of the company’s stock.
Becton, Dickinson and Company Trading Up 0.9 %
Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded up $2.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $238.25. The stock had a trading volume of 1,512,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,891,766. The stock has a market cap of $69.19 billion, a PE ratio of 48.03, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.49. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 52 week low of $228.62 and a 52 week high of $287.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $250.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $259.47.
Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.42. The business had revenue of $5.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 13.91%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.75 EPS. Analysts forecast that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Becton, Dickinson and Company Increases Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 8th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 7th. This is a positive change from Becton, Dickinson and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.39%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several analysts have recently weighed in on BDX shares. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $305.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 10th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $295.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 4th. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $304.00 to $269.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $284.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.86.
View Our Latest Analysis on Becton, Dickinson and Company
About Becton, Dickinson and Company (Get Free Report)
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.
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