Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday morning.

BAX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Baxter International from $46.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $39.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.91.

Baxter International Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE BAX opened at $34.22 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $17.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 171.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.60. Baxter International has a 12-month low of $32.48 and a 12-month high of $44.01.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 16.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Baxter International will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

Baxter International Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 580.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Baxter International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 2nd quarter worth $140,296,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 73.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,772,533 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $226,541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,862,626 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 2nd quarter valued at $67,263,000. Coho Partners Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 3rd quarter valued at $57,229,000. Finally, Shapiro Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC now owns 3,285,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $109,885,000 after purchasing an additional 541,575 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Baxter International Company Profile

Baxter International Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops and provides a portfolio of healthcare products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Medical Products and Therapies, Healthcare Systems and Technologies, Pharmaceuticals, and Kidney Care. The company offers sterile intravenous (IV) solutions; infusion systems and devices; parenteral nutrition therapies; generic injectable pharmaceuticals; surgical hemostat and sealant products, advanced surgical equipment; smart bed systems; patient monitoring and diagnostic technologies; and respiratory health devices, as well as advanced equipment for the surgical space, including surgical video technologies, precision positioning devices, and other accessories.