Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.00.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BLCO. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Bausch + Lomb from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Institutional Trading of Bausch + Lomb

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Bausch + Lomb by 80.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 29,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $576,000 after buying an additional 13,302 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the third quarter worth $302,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the third quarter worth $870,000. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 14.7% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 24,661 shares of the company’s stock worth $476,000 after acquiring an additional 3,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb during the third quarter valued at $957,000. 11.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bausch + Lomb Price Performance

Shares of Bausch + Lomb stock opened at $15.76 on Friday. Bausch + Lomb has a 52 week low of $13.16 and a 52 week high of $21.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $5.56 billion, a PE ratio of -17.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $16.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.10.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 6.62% and a positive return on equity of 3.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.24 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.74 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.