Graypoint LLC Sells 5,301 Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Graypoint LLC lowered its position in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 32.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 5,301 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $323,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in Baxter International in the second quarter worth $67,263,000. Coho Partners Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 3rd quarter worth about $57,229,000. Shapiro Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 19.7% in the 2nd quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC now owns 3,285,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $109,885,000 after acquiring an additional 541,575 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its position in Baxter International by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,154,616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $43,841,000 after acquiring an additional 208,726 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Baxter International by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,156,660 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $460,022,000 after acquiring an additional 170,776 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BAX. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Baxter International from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Baxter International from $46.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.45.

Baxter International Price Performance

BAX opened at $29.41 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $31.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 147.06, a P/E/G ratio of 12.74 and a beta of 0.59. Baxter International Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.33 and a 52-week high of $44.01.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.02. Baxter International had a net margin of 0.77% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Baxter International Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Baxter International Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Baxter International’s payout ratio is currently 340.00%.

About Baxter International

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.