Bausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE:BHC) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Bausch Health Companies Inc. (NYSE:BHC) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 6,450,000 shares, a drop of 17.0% from the February 13th total of 7,770,000 shares. Currently, 2.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,440,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on BHC. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $8.00 price target (down previously from $12.00) on shares of Bausch Health Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Bausch Health Companies from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $7.42.

Bausch Health Companies Trading Down 0.1 %

BHC stock traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $7.00. 795,747 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,698,594. Bausch Health Companies has a 1-year low of $3.96 and a 1-year high of $11.46. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a PE ratio of -58.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.59.

Bausch Health Companies (NYSE:BHC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.44). Bausch Health Companies had a negative return on equity of 577.82% and a negative net margin of 0.48%. The company had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Bausch Health Companies will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bausch Health Companies

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Bausch Health Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $468,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Bausch Health Companies by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 450,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,627,000 after acquiring an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in Bausch Health Companies by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 208,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,680,000 after acquiring an additional 6,591 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Bausch Health Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $927,000. Finally, Alpine Global Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bausch Health Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $114,000. 78.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.