Short Interest in Bausch + Lomb Corporation (NYSE:BLCO) Declines By 15.9%

Bausch + Lomb Corporation (NYSE:BLCO) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 2,659,462 shares, a decrease of 15.9% from the February 12th total of 3,163,577 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 592,081 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.5 days. Currently, 0.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Currently, 0.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 592,081 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Down 3.9%

Shares of BLCO traded down $0.66 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $16.05. The stock had a trading volume of 278,767 shares, compared to its average volume of 405,888. The company has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.75, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $17.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.26. Bausch + Lomb has a 1-year low of $10.45 and a 1-year high of $18.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.03). Bausch + Lomb had a positive return on equity of 2.77% and a negative net margin of 7.06%.The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.25 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bausch + Lomb

In related news, CFO Sam Eldessouky acquired 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.13 per share, for a total transaction of $68,520.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 403,130 shares in the company, valued at $6,905,616.90. The trade was a 1.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Brent L. Saunders bought 14,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $17.14 per share, for a total transaction of $251,958.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 966,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,567,095.50. This trade represents a 1.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have purchased 33,300 shares of company stock valued at $570,868 over the last 90 days. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BLCO. Oaktree Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Bausch + Lomb in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,801,000. Compass Rose Asset Management LP raised its holdings in Bausch + Lomb by 22.0% during the third quarter. Compass Rose Asset Management LP now owns 1,000,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,070,000 after purchasing an additional 180,000 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB purchased a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $202,000. Kazazian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 2nd quarter valued at $722,000. Finally, Goldentree Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 14.9% in the 2nd quarter. Goldentree Asset Management LP now owns 2,583,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,524,000 after buying an additional 334,916 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Bausch + Lomb from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Barclays lifted their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $16.00 target price on Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Evercore set a $18.00 price target on Bausch + Lomb and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.25.

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.