Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) Upgraded to “Overweight” at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $18.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $16.00.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on BLCO. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $16.50 to $17.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a hold rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore cut their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $17.00 to $15.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a buy rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $19.45.

Bausch + Lomb Price Performance

Shares of BLCO stock opened at $14.45 on Monday. Bausch + Lomb has a 1-year low of $13.16 and a 1-year high of $21.95. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $15.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. Bausch + Lomb had a positive return on equity of 3.60% and a negative net margin of 7.81%. The firm’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Bausch + Lomb

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Black Swift Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $170,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Renaissance Capital LLC raised its holdings in Bausch + Lomb by 27.3% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Capital LLC now owns 22,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 4,801 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Bausch + Lomb during the 3rd quarter valued at about $466,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 4th quarter valued at $1,706,000. Institutional investors own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Bausch + Lomb Company Profile

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.