Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Hits New 1-Year Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Baxter hit a new 52-week low of $16.06 and was trading down roughly 4.3% amid multiple analyst price-target cuts; the consensus rating is "Hold" with a $19.90 target.
• The company missed Q results on EPS ($0.44 vs. $0.53 expected) but beat on revenue ($2.97B), and set FY2026 guidance of $1.85–$2.05 EPS versus analysts' ~2.48 estimate.
• Baxter pays a nominal dividend (annualized yield ~0.3%) and is heavily institutionally owned (~90%), with large funds like Dodge & Cox and Greenhaven recently increasing stakes.

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $16.06 and last traded at $16.0750, with a volume of 2034156 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $16.67.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Baxter International from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Baxter International in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $19.00 to $15.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Baxter International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $30.00 to $25.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $19.90.

Baxter International Trading Down 4.3%

The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company has a market capitalization of $8.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.62, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.40 and a 200-day moving average of $20.18.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.09). Baxter International had a negative net margin of 8.51% and a positive return on equity of 16.95%. The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.58 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Baxter International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.850-2.050 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Baxter International's dividend payout ratio is presently -2.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Greenhaven Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the third quarter valued at approximately $143,186,000. Dodge & Cox boosted its stake in Baxter International by 10.1% during the third quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 57,396,370 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,306,915,000 after buying an additional 5,274,750 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Baxter International by 477.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,725,251 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $32,970,000 after buying an additional 1,426,547 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Baxter International by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,510,205 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $257,174,000 after buying an additional 972,891 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Baxter International by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,410,689 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $65,216,000 after acquiring an additional 894,761 shares during the last quarter. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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