Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $18.59.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BLCO shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Thursday, August 1st. HC Wainwright reduced their price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 5th. Raymond James assumed coverage on Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $19.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Brent L. Saunders bought 32,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $15.66 per share, with a total value of $505,035.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 595,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,320,346.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jump Financial LLC grew its holdings in Bausch + Lomb by 478.0% during the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 87,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,486,000 after acquiring an additional 72,030 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 114,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,948,000 after purchasing an additional 11,321 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in Bausch + Lomb during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,706,000. Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 302,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,152,000 after buying an additional 38,256 shares during the period. Finally, Freshford Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 29.8% in the fourth quarter. Freshford Capital Management LLC now owns 1,754,123 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,925,000 after purchasing an additional 403,062 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Bausch + Lomb Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BLCO opened at $16.43 on Monday. Bausch + Lomb has a fifty-two week low of $13.16 and a fifty-two week high of $18.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.65. The company has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of -17.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.60.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.13. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 10.15% and a positive return on equity of 3.36%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.18 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities 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.