UBS Group Issues Positive Forecast for Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Stock Price

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) had its price objective raised by investment analysts at UBS Group from $19.00 to $25.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 2.60% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also commented on BAX. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Baxter International from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Evercore lowered their target price on shares of Baxter International from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $21.09.

Baxter International Stock Up 4.4%

Shares of BAX traded up $1.03 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $24.37. 3,813,979 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,253,056. The company has a market cap of $12.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. Baxter International has a 12-month low of $15.73 and a 12-month high of $29.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.46.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.62 billion. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.15% and a negative net margin of 9.70%.The firm’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Baxter International will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Baxter International by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 8,014 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $153,000 after acquiring an additional 695 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 4,452 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 827 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Baxter International by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 15,968 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 854 shares during the last quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. lifted its position in shares of Baxter International by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 46,913 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $897,000 after purchasing an additional 943 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in Baxter International by 48.2% during the 4th quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,006 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Baxter International Company Profile

Baxter International Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products, pharmaceutical therapies and biotechnology-based solutions. The company’s primary business activities are organized around renal care, medication delivery, acute therapies, pharmacy automation, surgical care and biotechnology. Baxter’s offerings are designed to support patient care in hospitals, dialysis centers, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities worldwide.

In the renal care segment, Baxter provides hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis systems, water treatment equipment and related disposables, including dialyzers, bloodlines and catheters.