StockNews.com Upgrades Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning.

BAX has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced 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. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Baxter International from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Baxter International from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $39.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.20.

Baxter International Price Performance

BAX stock opened at $35.97 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Baxter International has a 12 month low of $31.75 and a 12 month high of $44.01. The firm has a market cap of $18.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.59. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $37.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.50.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last released its earnings results 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. Baxter International had a net margin of 16.51% and a return on equity of 18.06%. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Baxter International will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Baxter International by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 43,751 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,759 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 20.8% in the 2nd quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 2,235 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,480 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,517 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.