Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on Baxter International from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $39.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Baxter International from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $42.00.

Baxter International Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE BAX opened at $36.47 on Tuesday. Baxter International has a 1-year low of $31.75 and a 1-year high of $44.01. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $37.66 and a 200-day moving average of $36.50. The firm has a market cap of $18.58 billion, a PE ratio of 7.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.59.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 16.51%. Baxter International’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.55 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Baxter International will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Baxter International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BAX. First PREMIER Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 974.2% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,332 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $62,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

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.