Forsta AP Fonden Acquires 7,400 Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Forsta AP Fonden increased its holdings in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 6.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 113,900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,400 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $4,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Cromwell Holdings LLC bought a new position in Baxter International in the 3rd quarter valued at $62,000. Coho Partners Ltd. bought a new position in Baxter International in the 3rd quarter valued at $57,229,000. Greenleaf Trust boosted its position in Baxter International by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 9,491 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $360,000 after buying an additional 859 shares during the last quarter. Home Federal Bank of Tennessee boosted its position in Baxter International by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Home Federal Bank of Tennessee now owns 22,050 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $837,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Plimoth Trust Co. LLC bought a new position in Baxter International in the 3rd quarter valued at $201,000. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on BAX. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Baxter International from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.20.

Baxter International Stock Performance

Shares of Baxter International stock opened at $35.99 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.34 billion, a PE ratio of 6.92, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.59. Baxter International Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.75 and a 12 month high of $44.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.30.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 16.51%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

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.