Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Price Target Cut to $45.00 by Analysts at Evercore ISI

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) had its price objective dropped by investment analysts at Evercore ISI from $46.00 to $45.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the medical instruments supplier’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 36.32% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on BAX. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Baxter International in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on Baxter International from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company. in a report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Baxter International has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.46.

Baxter International Stock Down 0.2 %

BAX traded down $0.05 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $33.01. 327,413 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,001,229. Baxter International has a 12-month low of $31.01 and a 12-month high of $50.21. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.36, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.57.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. Baxter International had a net margin of 17.79% and a return on equity of 18.47%. The business had revenue of $3.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.59 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Baxter International will post 2.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Baxter International

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Carmignac Gestion raised its stake in shares of Baxter International by 467.0% in the third quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 4,848,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $182,992,000 after acquiring an additional 3,993,537 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Baxter International by 11.3% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 10,836,563 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $408,992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098,787 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Baxter International by 79.9% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,121,434 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $43,357,000 after purchasing an additional 498,007 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 110.9% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 797,372 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $30,826,000 after purchasing an additional 419,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in Baxter International by 46.8% in the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,170,655 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $45,258,000 after buying an additional 373,409 shares during the period. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Baxter International

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.