Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Sells 4,100 Shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company $BDX

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co lowered its position in Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 62,321 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 4,100 shares during the quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $11,665,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BDX. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. boosted its stake in 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 worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company by 285.3% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 131 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Bell Investment Advisors Inc grew its stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 474.1% during the second quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 155 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company by 463.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 169 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. 86.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BDX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $197.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $184.00 to $157.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.46.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Price Performance

BDX opened at $177.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market cap of $50.66 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.25. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 1 year low of $127.59 and a 1 year high of $185.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $199.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $192.25.

Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 15.76% and a net margin of 8.01%.Becton, Dickinson and Company’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.43 EPS. Becton, Dickinson and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.350-12.650 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 14.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Becton, Dickinson and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Becton, Dickinson and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.52%.

Becton, Dickinson and Company announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 27th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to purchase up to 0% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Key Stories Impacting Becton, Dickinson and Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Becton, Dickinson and Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies initiated/issued a buy/recommendation on BDX, signaling conviction from at least one active analyst and supporting near-term demand for the shares. Becton Dickinson (BDX) Gets a Buy from Jefferies
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised its price target to $189 (from $183) and kept a hold rating — a modest positive reaffirmation that implies upside from current levels. TD Cowen adjusts Becton Dickinson PT to $189
• Positive Sentiment: BDX completed its Biosciences & Diagnostics spin-off and merged that unit with Waters, securing about $4B in proceeds and repositioning BDX as a pure?play MedTech company — this materially improves balance-sheet flexibility and focuses growth strategy. BD Merges Biosciences & Diagnostics Business With Waters
• Positive Sentiment: Company commentary and analysis (Q4 deep dive) indicate portfolio reshaping and targeted product investments have helped offset tariff headwinds — a constructive operational narrative for medium-term margins. BDX Q4 Deep Dive
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup revised its price target (reported as a lower target of $232) — still above current levels, so this is mixed: a cut in outlook from one bank but not a bearish absolute level. Citigroup Lowers BDX Price Target to $232
• Neutral Sentiment: Roundups and analyst-coverage pieces summarize a split street: several firms remain constructive while others are cautious, leaving consensus near-term guidance mixed. Are Wall Street Analysts Bullish on BDX?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded BDX from Hold to Strong Sell — a sharp negative signal that can trigger selling by some momentum/quant funds and influences retail sentiment. Zacks downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan and Wells Fargo published pessimistic forecasts/comments on BDX, adding coordinated downside pressure from large institutional analysts. JPMorgan pessimistic forecast Wells Fargo pessimistic forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Market reports note shares gapped down on the analyst downgrade wave, reflecting immediate selling pressure following the negative analyst actions. BDX Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Becton, Dickinson and Company news, EVP Michael David Garrison sold 1,610 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.46, for a total transaction of $334,010.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,509,228.70. The trade was a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 2,463 shares of company stock valued at $501,530. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Becton, Dickinson and 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.