Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Stock Falls 5% – Here’s Why

Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) fell 5% on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $23.97 and last traded at $23.7430. 1,543,070 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 7,770,873 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.99.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Baxter International from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Baxter International from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Baxter International in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $19.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Baxter International currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $21.73.

Baxter International Trading Down 3.9%

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.42 billion, a PE ratio of -11.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.65.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.19. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.57% and a negative net margin of 9.27%. The company had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Baxter International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.950-2.150 EPS. Analysts predict that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th were paid a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 28th. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio is -1.93%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Baxter International

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new position in Baxter International in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC lifted its stake in shares of Baxter International by 52.4% in the 2nd quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 2,153 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 552.2% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,413 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 2,043 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the third quarter valued at about $75,000. 90.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Baxter International

Baxter International Inc is a global medical products and healthcare technology company headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois. The company develops, manufactures and distributes products used in hospitals, clinics, ambulatory care centers and other healthcare settings.

Baxter’s portfolio has included intravenous therapies and administration systems, infusion pumps, connected-care technologies, surgical products, patient monitoring equipment and products used in medication preparation and delivery.