Brokerages Set Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Target Price at $19.83

Shares of Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the twelve research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $20.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on BLCO shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup downgraded Bausch + Lomb from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:BLCO opened at $15.82 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.46. Bausch + Lomb has a 12 month low of $13.16 and a 12 month high of $21.69. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $17.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.15.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.26 billion. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 6.62% and a positive return on equity of 3.35%. Bausch + Lomb’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.24 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BLCO. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Bausch + Lomb by 68.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb during the 4th quarter valued at $72,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb during the 4th quarter valued at $181,000. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new position in Bausch + Lomb during the fourth quarter worth $181,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the fourth quarter valued at $188,000. 11.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.