Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on BAX. Morgan Stanley downgraded Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $39.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $38.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.73.

Baxter International Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE:BAX opened at $39.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.57, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.59. Baxter International has a 52 week low of $31.01 and a 52 week high of $44.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $36.88 and a 200 day moving average of $37.42.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.02. The firm 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%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Baxter International will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Baxter International

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BAX. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in Baxter International during the second quarter valued at approximately $140,296,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 73.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,772,533 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $226,541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,862,626 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC purchased a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $67,263,000. Shapiro Capital Management LLC lifted 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 valued at $109,885,000 after purchasing an additional 541,575 shares during the period. Finally, Carmignac Gestion boosted its holdings in Baxter International by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 5,311,012 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $205,324,000 after buying an additional 462,239 shares in the last quarter. 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.