Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) Sees Strong Trading Volume on Analyst Upgrade

Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Monday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $16.00 to $19.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the stock. Approximately 429,130 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 23% from the previous session’s volume of 559,506 shares.The stock last traded at $19.71 and had previously closed at $19.96.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on BLCO. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Raymond James assumed coverage on Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $19.00 price target for the company. HC Wainwright lowered their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BLCO. Clearline Capital LP lifted its position in Bausch + Lomb by 136.8% during the 2nd quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 712,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,339,000 after buying an additional 411,404 shares in the last quarter. Freshford Capital Management LLC raised its stake 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 worth $29,925,000 after acquiring an additional 403,062 shares during the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the first quarter worth approximately $6,817,000. Whitebox Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 28.2% during the second quarter. Whitebox Advisors LLC now owns 1,545,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,447,000 after purchasing an additional 339,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rokos Capital Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the first quarter valued at approximately $5,602,000. 11.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bausch + Lomb Trading Down 1.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business’s fifty day moving average is $16.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.70. The firm has a market cap of $6.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.46.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last released its 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 positive return on equity of 3.36% and a negative net margin of 10.15%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.18 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Bausch + Lomb Co. will post 0.6 earnings per share 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.