Becton, Dickinson and Company

(New York Stock Exchange)
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Somewhat Bearish -25

Earnings Preview: Becton Dickinson (BDX) Q2 Earnings Expected to Decline

AI-generated analysis

📉 Market analysts expect Becton Dickinson (BDX) to report a year-over-year earnings decline when results are released on May 7.

💰 Quarterly earnings are projected at $2.77 per share, representing a significant -17.3% drop from the previous year.

📉 Revenue is forecasted to fall to $4.67 billion, which is an 11.5% decrease compared to the year-ago quarter.

📝 Analyst consensus estimates for BDX have been revised 0.56% lower over the last 30 days due to recent bearish reassessments.

🔮 The Zacks Earnings ESP model shows a -0.24% reading, indicating that the Most Accurate Estimate is lower than the Consensus Estimate.

📊 Becton Dickinson currently holds a Zacks Rank of #3, but the negative Earnings ESP makes an earnings beat difficult to predict.

📜 Historically, BDX has beaten consensus EPS estimates four times over the last four quarters, including a +3.19% surprise in the most recent quarter.

⚠️ Investors are cautioned that a stock may still move lower despite beating expectations due to other disappointing factors mentioned by management.

👀 Analysts advise monitoring the company's discussion of business conditions during the earnings call for future sustainability clues.

🦷 A peer comparison is made with Dentsply International (XRAY), which is expected to report earnings of $0.28 per share.

💸 Dentsply International projects revenues of $840.06 million with an 11.5% decline in revenue compared to the prior year.

📈 Dentsply shows a positive Earnings ESP of +1.98%, suggesting a higher probability of beating estimates than its BDX counterpart.

🏆 Zacks research indicates that a positive Earnings ESP combined with Strong Buy or Hold ranks predicts an earnings beat nearly 70% of the time.

❗️ A negative Earnings ESP reading, like BDX's -0.24%, is not considered a strong predictor of an earnings miss by itself.

📉 The consensus EPS estimate for Dentsply has been revised 3.9% lower recently, yet it retains a positive surprise prediction model reading.

Bullish Signals
  • Becton Dickinson (BDX) demonstrated a strong historical track record of beating consensus estimates, having outperformed expectations in all four of the last reported quarters.
  • The company previously delivered an earnings surprise of +3.19% when it posted $2.91 per share compared to the expected $2.82 per share in the most recent quarter ended March 2026.
  • Despite current analyst revisions, Becton Dickinson maintains a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold), which is associated with increased predictive power for earnings surprises when combined with positive Earnings ESP indicators.
  • Investors should monitor the upcoming earnings release scheduled for May 7, as results beating expectations could drive stock movement higher regardless of aggregate consensus estimates.
Risk Factors
  • Becton Dickinson (BDX) is expected to report a significant year-over-year earnings decline of -17.3%, with quarterly EPS forecasted at $2.77.
  • Revenue growth is also anticipated to contract substantially, with estimates pointing to an 11.5% year-over-year drop to $4.67 billion.
  • Analyst sentiment has turned bearish recently, as the Most Accurate Estimate fell below the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driving the Earnings ESP negative at -0.24%.
  • The negative Earnings ESP reading suggests there is no strong indicator that BDX will beat earnings expectations, despite a history of four beats in the last four quarters.
  • Analysts have collectively revised their consensus EPS estimate 0.56% lower over the past 30 days, reflecting worsening business condition assessments.
  • The combination of a negative Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) makes it difficult to predict a positive earnings surprise with confidence.
Full Analysis
Becton Dickinson and Company (BDX) is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings for the period ended March 2026 on May 7, with market expectations predicting a year-over-year decline in both revenues and earnings per share. Analysts currently estimate quarterly earnings at $2.77 per share, representing a 17.3% decrease from the previous year, while projected revenues stand at $4.67 billion, down 11.5%. These consensus estimates have been revised downward by approximately 0.56% over the last 30 days, reflecting growing analyst caution regarding the company's near-term outlook. The article utilizes the Zacks Earnings ESP model to assess the likelihood of an earnings surprise, noting that for Becton Dickinson, the Most Accurate Estimate is currently lower than the consensus average, resulting in a negative Earnings ESP of -0.24%. Despite the stock maintaining a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold), which typically offers strong predictive power for positive surprises when combined with a positive ESP, the current combination suggests that Becton Dickinson is not a compelling candidate for beating earnings expectations based solely on this metric. Historical data indicates that Becton Dickinson has beaten consensus EPS estimates four times over its last four reported quarters, with the most recent quarter showing a surprise of +3.19% when it produced earnings of $2.91 against an expectation of $2.82. However, the article clarifies that past performance does not guarantee future results and that stock price movements can be influenced by factors other than the binary beat or miss of earnings figures. The piece concludes by highlighting that while betting on companies expected to beat consensus increases odds of success, investors should also weigh other catalysts before trading the stock ahead of its May 7 release. As an ancillary comparison, the text briefly mentions peer company Dentsply International (XRAY), which is expected to report earnings for March 2026 at $0.28 per share with an Earnings ESP of +1.98% despite a Zacks Rank of #3, suggesting different dynamics compared to Becton Dickinson.