Short Interest in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Rises By 5.0%

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,930,000 shares, an increase of 5.0% from the March 15th total of 2,790,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,430,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company stock traded down $3.71 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $231.01. The stock had a trading volume of 1,064,142 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,412,517. The firm has a market cap of $66.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.43. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12 month low of $229.85 and a 12 month high of $287.32. The business’s 50-day moving average is $240.64 and its 200 day moving average is $242.91. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 6.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.98 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid 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 dividend yield of 1.64%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 90.05%.

Insider Activity at Becton, Dickinson and Company

In related news, SVP Thomas J. Spoerel sold 282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $67,197.78. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at $542,348.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth about $52,000. Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $1,295,000. Vest Financial LLC grew 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 purchasing an additional 22,207 shares during the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC grew 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 purchasing an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew 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 purchasing an additional 6,190 shares during the last quarter. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BDX shares. Barclays increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Raymond James upped their price target 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Becton, Dickinson and Company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.00.

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.