Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Cut to "Strong Sell" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Baxter International from "hold" to "strong sell", adding to a generally bearish analyst backdrop for the stock.
• Other firms have also turned cautious, including Citigroup cutting Baxter to "sell" and lowering its price target to $17; the broader analyst consensus now sits at "Reduce" with an average target of $19.73.
• Baxter shares were down 3.4% to $21.80, even after the company recently reported Q1 earnings of $0.36 per share and revenue of $2.70 billion, both above expectations.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

BAX has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup lowered shares of Baxter International from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $19.00 to $17.00 in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Evercore cut their price target on shares of Baxter International from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Baxter International in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $20.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on Baxter International from $22.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $19.73.

Baxter International Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of BAX stock opened at $21.80 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.26 billion, a PE ratio of -10.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.62. Baxter International has a 1-year low of $15.73 and a 1-year high of $29.35. The business has a 50-day moving average of $19.93 and a 200 day moving average of $19.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.15% and a negative net margin of 9.70%.The business had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Baxter International will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Baxter International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Baxter International during the third quarter worth about $27,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in Baxter International in the second quarter worth about $46,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Baxter International in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 552.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,413 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,043 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.

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