Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Upgraded to Hold at Zacks Research

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Baxter International’s Q2 2026 earnings at $0.37 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.52 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.62 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $1.87 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.38 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.40 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.55 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $1.91 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $0.40 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $2.14 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Barclays increased their target price on Baxter International from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Baxter International in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $20.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $17.00 to $19.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.91.

Baxter International Stock Up 1.3%

BAX opened at $19.42 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.03 billion, a PE ratio of -9.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.75. 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 52 week low of $15.73 and a 52 week high of $32.04.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last posted its 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 company had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Baxter International will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Baxter International

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dodge & Cox raised its position in Baxter International by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 57,396,370 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,306,915,000 after purchasing an additional 5,274,750 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Baxter International by 7.8% during the fourth 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 during the period. Greenhaven Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 70.0% during the fourth quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 10,693,223 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $204,347,000 after buying an additional 4,404,874 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 1.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,638,629 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $231,304,000 after buying an additional 97,687 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 35.6% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,410,689 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $65,216,000 after buying an additional 894,761 shares during the period. 90.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.