Bausch Health Cos (NYSE:BHC) Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group to Hold Rating

Bausch Health Cos (NYSE:BHC) was upgraded by investment analysts at Jefferies Financial Group to a “hold” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Bausch Health Cos from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Bausch Health Cos from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.00.

Bausch Health Cos Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BHC opened at $4.57 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 54.68, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.32. Bausch Health Cos has a one year low of $4.33 and a one year high of $8.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.41 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $5.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.58.

Bausch Health Cos (NYSE:BHC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.37 billion. Bausch Health Cos had a negative net margin of 11.47% and a negative return on equity of 2,922.77%. Analysts forecast that Bausch Health Cos will post 4.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frank D. Lee sold 24,456 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.43, for a total transaction of $132,796.08. Following the sale, the director owned 49,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $267,910.77. This trade represents a 33.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 20.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Bausch Health Cos by 61.7% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 23,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 9,148 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Bausch Health Cos by 24.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,363,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,362,000 after buying an additional 2,262,894 shares during the period. Whitebox Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bausch Health Cos by 3.7% during the first quarter. Whitebox Advisors LLC now owns 564,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,049,000 after buying an additional 20,175 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Bausch Health Cos by 15.5% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 53,139 shares of the company’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 7,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Bausch Health Cos by 10.0% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,575,772 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,509,000 after acquiring an additional 143,581 shares during the last quarter. 78.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Bausch Health Cos

Bausch Health Cos Inc, formerly known as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, is a global specialty pharmaceutical company headquartered in Laval, Quebec, Canada. The company operates through two primary segments: Ophthalmology, led by its Bausch + Lomb franchise, and Diversified Brands, which encompasses prescription dermatology, gastrointestinal, neurology and branded pharmaceutical products. Bausch Health develops, manufactures and markets a range of therapeutic and over-the-counter offerings designed to address conditions such as cataracts, dry eye, glaucoma, acne, rosacea, migraine and gastrointestinal disorders.

The Ophthalmology segment under the Bausch + Lomb name provides products for eye health, including prescription drops, contact lens care solutions, intraocular lenses, surgical instruments and diagnostic devices.