Traders Purchase Large Volume of Bausch Health Companies Call Options (NYSE:BHC)

Bausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE:BHC) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 6,463 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 61% compared to the average volume of 4,017 call options.

Insider Activity at Bausch Health Companies

In other Bausch Health Companies news, EVP Seana Carson sold 13,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total transaction of $83,027.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 435,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,702,579.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 8.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bausch Health Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHC. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Bausch Health Companies in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its holdings in Bausch Health Companies by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 88,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $933,000 after purchasing an additional 3,519 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC boosted its holdings in Bausch Health Companies by 46.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 11,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 3,643 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Bausch Health Companies in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Bausch Health Companies by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 60,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 3,923 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.65% of the company’s stock.

Bausch Health Companies Trading Up 11.7 %

NYSE BHC opened at $8.02 on Thursday. Bausch Health Companies has a 1 year low of $3.96 and a 1 year high of $11.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.35. The company has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.47 and a beta of 0.75.

Bausch Health Companies (NYSE:BHC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.33 billion. Bausch Health Companies had a negative net margin of 5.12% and a negative return on equity of 742.06%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Bausch Health Companies will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on BHC shares. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Bausch Health Companies from $10.00 to $8.50 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James started coverage on Bausch Health Companies in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $8.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Bausch Health Companies from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Bausch Health Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler cut shares of Bausch Health Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $9.00 to $3.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bausch Health Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.33.

About Bausch Health Companies

Bausch Health Companies Inc operates as a diversified specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company in the United States and internationally. It develops, manufactures, and markets a range of products primarily in gastroenterology, hepatology, neurology, dermatology, international pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter (OTC) products, aesthetic medical devices, and eye health.