Becton Dickinson
Becton Dickinson's revenue rose 8.2% to $21.8 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 11.8%, down from 11.9% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $2.7 billion, down 14.4%. It paid out $2.2 billion in dividends and buybacks, 82% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 0.9%.
Operating margin is operating income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.
Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.
Revenue and margins
Net income and earnings per share
From fiscal 2016 to 2025, earnings per share grew 2.9% a year and net income 6.2% a year, as new shares raised the share count by 33% and diluted each share's earnings.
Returns on capital
Cash flow
Payouts and share count
Valuation
Two ways to value Becton Dickinson yourself, both starting from its filings: a discounted cash flow model and the price-to-earnings method.
Discounted cash flow (DCF)
A discounted cash flow (DCF) model values a business as the cash it may generate in future, discounted back to today. The starting figures come from Becton Dickinson's 10-K (or, for net cash and shares, its latest 10-Q) and the assumptions are yours: start from one of three example scenarios, then change any figure to see what it implies for a share, and how that compares with the last share price.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Becton Dickinson's fiscal 2025 free cash flow of $2.7B, net cash of −$17.0B at September 30, 2025 and 288 million diluted shares, from its filings. The scenarios are fitted to Becton Dickinson: the base scenario's growth in years 1 to 5 is its revenue growth over the last 3 years, 5.0% a year; the cautious and optimistic ones are lower and higher, and growth in years 6 to 10 is halfway to the long-run rate. The base scenario's discount rate is 9% for a business of moderate risk (Health Care Equipment); the cautious and optimistic ones use a point more and a point less. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $196.39
- Value on these assumptions, against the last close
- —
- Cash flows in years 1 to 10, valued today
- —
- Everything after year 10, valued today
- —
- Plus net cash
- —
- Share of value from after year 10
How the value changes with two assumptions
Price-to-earnings (P/E) method
Another common way to value a company is to multiply its earnings per share by a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple: the number of years of today's earnings an investor pays for a share. A higher multiple usually means investors expect earnings to grow. Choose a multiple, for example from similar companies, to see the value it gives.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Becton Dickinson's earnings per share of $3.32 (over the last four quarters). Each grows earnings for a year at the cash flow scenarios' rates and applies a multiple to next year's earnings: 27.8×, the middle of Becton Dickinson's own P/E today, its peers' median and its sector's median (the Health Care median) for the base scenario, 20% less and more for the cautious and optimistic ones. The price is brought back a year at 10%, 9% and 8%. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $196.39
- Value at this multiple, against the last close
- —
- Becton Dickinson's P/E at the last close
- 59.2×
| Company | Last close | Earnings per share | P/E today |
|---|---|---|---|
| Becton DickinsonBDX | $196.39 | $3.32 | 59.2× |
| StrykerSYK | $306.13 | $9.65 | 31.7× |
| Boston ScientificBSX | $45.58 | $2.47 | 18.5× |
| GE HealthCareGEHC | $71.98 | $4.18 | 17.2× |
Balance sheet
| Fiscal year end | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and short-term investments | 2.3 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 0.6 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | 17.1 | 13.9 | 14.7 | 17.9 | 17.6 |
| Net debt (negative means net cash) | 14.8 | 12.9 | 13.3 | 15.8 | 17.0 |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 3.3x | 2.9x | 3.0x | 3.4x | 3.4x |
| Debt to equity | 0.7x | 0.6x | 0.6x | 0.7x | 0.7x |
| Interest coverage | 4.8x | 5.7x | 4.7x | 4.5x | 4.2x |
| Current ratio | 1.3x | 1.0x | 1.3x | 1.2x | 1.1x |
| Quick ratio | 0.9x | 0.6x | 0.8x | 0.7x | 0.6x |
Insider trades
Over the 12 months between October 27, 2025 and October 26, 2026, no insider bought Becton Dickinson shares on the open market, and 5 insiders sold $2.8 million, $2.1 million of it under trading plans set up in advance.
| Date | Insider | Trade | Shares | Price | Value | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 28, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 76 | $183.70 | $13,961 | Form 4 |
| Aug 26, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 165 | $188.49 | $31,101 | Form 4 |
| Aug 13, 2026 | Thomas E Polen JrChairman, CEO and President, Director | Sold plan | 4,152 | $185.00 | $768,120 | Form 4 |
| Aug 11, 2026 | Roland GoetteEVP and President, Emea | Sold | 2,438 | $180.84 | $440,888 | Form 4 |
| Jul 27, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 75 | $157.13 | $11,785 | Form 4 |
| Jun 26, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 75 | $152.80 | $11,460 | Form 4 |
| Jun 24, 2026 | Michael David GarrisonEVP & Pres Med.Essntl&BioPharm | Sold plan | 1,100 | $145.66 | $160,226 | Form 4 |
| Jun 10, 2026 | Michael David GarrisonEVP & Pres Med.Essntl&BioPharm | Sold plan | 1,100 | $151.48 | $166,628 | Form 4 |
| Jun 1, 2026 | Thomas E Polen JrChairman, CEO and President, Director | Sold plan | 2,764 | $146.35 | $404,511 | Form 4 |
| May 26, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 75 | $147.35 | $11,051 | Form 4 |
| Apr 27, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 74 | $151.94 | $11,244 | Form 4 |
| Mar 26, 2026 | Michael FeldEVP, Chief Revenue Officer | Sold plan | 75 | $156.83 | $11,762 | Form 4 |
Piotroski F-score
The F-score counts how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency a company passed in a year (Piotroski, 2000). The more tests passed, the stronger the year: 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.
| Test | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net income is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Cash from operations is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Return on assets rose | Fail | Pass | Fail |
| Cash from operations exceeds net income | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Debt fell relative to assets | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| Current ratio rose | Pass | Fail | Fail |
| Share count didn't rise | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| Gross margin rose | Fail | Pass | Pass |
| Revenue rose relative to assets | Pass | Pass | Fail |
| F-score | 5 of 9 | 6 of 9 | 6 of 9 |
| Accruals ratio | −2.9% | −3.9% | −3.1% |
Compare
Put Becton Dickinson side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.
Similar companies
| Company | Year | Revenue growth | Operating margin | Free cash flow margin | Return on capital | Net debt to EBITDA | F-score | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Becton Dickinson | FY25 | 8.2% | 11.8% | 12.2% | 5.5% | 3.4x | 6 | |
| GE HealthCare | FY25 | 4.8% | 13.4% | 7.3% | 13.2% | 1.8x | 7 | Compare |
| Boston Scientific | FY25 | 19.9% | 18.0% | 18.2% | 9.6% | 1.8x | 7 | Compare |
| Stryker | FY25 | 11.2% | 19.5% | 17.1% | 11.3% | 1.7x | 6 | Compare |
| Philips | FY25 | −1.0% | 8.0% | — | 6.5% | 2.1x | — | Compare |
10 years of figures
| Fiscal year | FY16 | FY17 | FY18 | FY19 | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income statement | ||||||||||
| Revenue | 12.5 | 12.1 | 16.0 | 17.3 | 16.1 | 19.1 | 18.9 | 19.4 | 20.2 | 21.8 |
| Revenue growth | 21.4% | −3.1% | 32.2% | 8.2% | −7.0% | 19.0% | −1.4% | 2.7% | 4.2% | 8.2% |
| Gross profit | 6.0 | 5.9 | 7.3 | 8.3 | 7.6 | 8.6 | 8.5 | 8.2 | 9.1 | 9.9 |
| Research and development | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.3 |
| Operating income | 1.4 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 2.6 |
| Net income | 1.0 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 1.7 | 1.7 |
| Diluted EPS (US$) | 4.49 | 4.60 | 0.60 | 3.94 | 2.71 | 6.85 | 5.88 | 4.94 | 5.86 | 5.82 |
| Diluted shares (millions) | 218 | 224 | 265 | 275 | 282 | 292 | 287 | 288 | 291 | 288 |
| Cash flow | ||||||||||
| Cash from operations | 2.6 | 2.5 | 2.9 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 4.6 | 2.5 | 3.0 | 3.8 | 3.4 |
| Capital expenditure | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.8 |
| Free cash flow | 1.9 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 2.8 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 2.1 | 3.1 | 2.7 |
| Dividends paid | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.2 |
| Share buybacks | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 1.0 |
| Acquisitions | 0.0 | 0.2 | 15.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 0.0 | 3.9 | 0.0 |
| Stock-based compensation | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Balance sheet at fiscal year end | ||||||||||
| Cash and short-term investments | 1.6 | 14.2 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 2.8 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 0.6 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | — | 18.7 | 18.9 | 18.1 | 17.2 | 17.1 | 13.9 | 14.7 | 17.9 | 17.6 |
| Total assets | 25.6 | 37.7 | 53.9 | 51.8 | 54.0 | 53.9 | 52.9 | 52.8 | 57.3 | 55.3 |
| Total liabilities | 18.0 | 24.8 | 32.9 | 30.7 | 30.2 | 30.2 | 27.7 | 27.0 | 31.4 | 29.9 |
| Shareholders' equity | 7.6 | 12.9 | 21.0 | 21.1 | 23.8 | 23.7 | 25.3 | 25.8 | 25.9 | 25.4 |
| Margins and ratios | ||||||||||
| Gross margin | 48.0% | 49.1% | 45.5% | 47.9% | 47.1% | 45.1% | 44.9% | 42.2% | 45.2% | 45.4% |
| Operating margin | 11.5% | 12.6% | 9.4% | 10.2% | 5.7% | 11.8% | 12.1% | 10.9% | 11.9% | 11.8% |
| Net margin | 7.8% | 9.1% | 1.9% | 7.1% | 5.4% | 10.9% | 9.4% | 7.7% | 8.4% | 7.7% |
| Free cash flow margin | 14.9% | 15.1% | 12.3% | 13.7% | 17.2% | 18.1% | 7.9% | 10.9% | 15.5% | 12.2% |
| Return on capital | — | — | 2.7% | 4.5% | 2.0% | 5.6% | 5.5% | 5.0% | 5.0% | 5.5% |
| Return on equity | 13.2% | 10.7% | 1.8% | 5.9% | 3.9% | 8.8% | 7.3% | 5.8% | 6.6% | 6.5% |
| Return on assets | 3.8% | 3.5% | 0.7% | 2.3% | 1.6% | 3.9% | 3.3% | 2.8% | 3.1% | 3.0% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | 1.7x | 5.1x | 4.4x | 4.8x | 3.3x | 2.9x | 3.0x | 3.4x | 3.4x |