Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) Shares Sold by Wesbanco Bank Inc.

Wesbanco Bank Inc. reduced its position in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,423 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 451 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Baxter International by 73.2% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,772,533 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $226,541,000 after acquiring an additional 2,862,626 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the second quarter valued at $140,296,000. Shapiro Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Baxter International by 19.7% in the second 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 last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC purchased a new position in Baxter International during the second quarter worth about $67,263,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Baxter International by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,206,242 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $51,553,000 after buying an additional 84,808 shares during the last quarter. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Baxter International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BAX opened at $36.77 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Baxter International Inc. has a 1-year low of $31.32 and a 1-year high of $44.01. The business has a 50-day moving average of $37.63 and a 200-day moving average of $36.72.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.75 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 16.51%. Baxter International’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BAX shares. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $39.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Baxter International from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Baxter International from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.00.

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.