Jacobs & Co. CA Sells 1,425 Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Jacobs & Co. CA trimmed its holdings in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 7,829 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 1,425 shares during the period. Jacobs & Co. CA’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Baxter International during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Baxter International in the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Baxter International by 974.2% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,332 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,208 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in Baxter International by 31.0% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 1,870 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp grew its stake in Baxter International by 20.8% in the second quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 2,235 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BAX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley downgraded Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $39.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Baxter International from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.00.

Baxter International Stock Down 2.5 %

BAX stock opened at $35.97 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.59. Baxter International Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.01 and a 12 month high of $44.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $37.10. 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 (NYSE:BAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.02. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 16.51%. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Baxter International’s payout ratio is 22.31%.

Baxter International Profile

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.