Short Interest in Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Decreases By 13.6%

Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 967,300 shares, a decline of 13.6% from the October 31st total of 1,120,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 639,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 2.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. HC Wainwright raised their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Bausch + Lomb from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $19.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,020,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,974,000 after buying an additional 85,987 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Europe London LLP increased its position in Bausch + Lomb by 28.9% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Europe London LLP now owns 653,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,489,000 after purchasing an additional 146,583 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in Bausch + Lomb in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $580,000. Clearline Capital LP boosted its position in Bausch + Lomb by 136.8% in the second quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 712,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,339,000 after buying an additional 411,404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 25.0% during the second quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 390,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,663,000 after buying an additional 78,000 shares during the last quarter. 11.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Performance

BLCO opened at $19.46 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.85 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s fifty day moving average is $19.79 and its 200-day moving average is $17.21. Bausch + Lomb has a 52-week low of $13.16 and a 52-week high of $21.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.01. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 7.86% and a positive return on equity of 3.17%. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Bausch + Lomb

Bausch + Lomb Corporation operates as an eye health company in the United States, Puerto Rico, China, France, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, Spain, Italy, Mexico, Poland, South Korea, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Vision Care, Pharmaceuticals, and Surgical. The Vision Care segment provides contact lens that covers the spectrum of wearing modalities, including daily disposable and frequently replaced contact lenses; and contact lens care products comprising over-the-counter eye drops, eye vitamins, and mineral supplements that address various conditions, such as eye allergies, conjunctivitis, dry eye, and redness relief.