Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest
by Jessica Moore · The Cerbat GemBecton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 9,492,557 shares, a drop of 17.2% from the March 15th total of 11,469,470 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,279,841 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days. Currently, 3.3% of the company’s shares are short sold.
Insider Transactions at Becton, Dickinson and Company
In related news, Director Bertram L. Scott sold 953 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.61, for a total transaction of $174,027.33. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 36,763 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,713,291.43. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 1,103 shares of company stock worth $202,870 in the last ninety days. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 285.3% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 131 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 256.8% in the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 132 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Steph & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 95.6% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.97% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
BDX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $202.00 price target for the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $189.08.
Get Our Latest Research Report on BDX
Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Up 2.3%
Shares of NYSE BDX traded up $3.50 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $158.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,398,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,343,686. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $127.59 and a 1 year high of $187.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.01 and a beta of 0.29.
Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.10. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 15.76%. The business had revenue of $4.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.350-12.650 EPS. On average, equities 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 program on Tuesday, January 27th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical instruments supplier to reacquire up to 0% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th were paid a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s payout ratio is currently 68.52%.
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.