Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) Shares Sold by Community Bank N.A.

Community Bank N.A. reduced its stake in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 79.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,675 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 18,532 shares during the quarter. Community Bank N.A.’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $181,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Baxter International by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 10,836,563 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $408,992,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098,787 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Baxter International by 69.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,491,343 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $244,983,000 after purchasing an additional 2,650,959 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $215,935,000. Carmignac Gestion raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 467.0% during the 3rd quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 4,848,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $182,992,000 after buying an additional 3,993,537 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 3,151,515 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $118,938,000 after buying an additional 30,477 shares during the period. 90.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Baxter International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BAX traded down $0.83 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $40.10. 1,995,846 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,623,372. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day moving average is $41.86 and its 200 day moving average is $38.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.62. Baxter International Inc. has a one year low of $31.01 and a one year high of $50.21.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.02. Baxter International had a net margin of 17.77% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on BAX. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Baxter International from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Baxter International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.30.

Baxter International Profile

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.