Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 967,300 shares, a drop of 13.6% from the October 31st total of 1,120,000 shares. Approximately 2.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 639,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days.

Bausch + Lomb Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE BLCO traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $19.38. 30,531 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 551,080. Bausch + Lomb has a one year low of $13.16 and a one year high of $21.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.21.

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

Institutional Trading of Bausch + Lomb

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Renaissance Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Bausch + Lomb by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Capital LLC now owns 36,286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $527,000 after acquiring an additional 13,210 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 14,052.2% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 3,232 shares during the period. Fore Capital LLC lifted its stake in Bausch + Lomb by 90.2% during the second quarter. Fore Capital LLC now owns 42,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $612,000 after buying an additional 20,000 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 53.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 67,690 shares of the company’s stock worth $984,000 after buying an additional 23,714 shares during the period. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC raised its holdings 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 valued at $5,663,000 after acquiring an additional 78,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on BLCO shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Bausch + Lomb from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $19.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bausch + Lomb presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.00.

Bausch + Lomb Company Profile

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.