Short Interest in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) Rises By 6.3%

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) was the target of a large growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,790,000 shares, a growth of 6.3% from the September 30th total of 12,030,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,940,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BAX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on Baxter International from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Baxter International from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $39.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Baxter International from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.20.

Baxter International Price Performance

Shares of BAX traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $35.88. 917,402 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,032,735. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.29. The company has a market capitalization of $18.31 billion, a PE ratio of 7.43, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Baxter International has a one year low of $32.28 and a one year high of $44.01.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.02. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 16.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Baxter International will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Baxter International

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Baxter International by 73.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,772,533 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $226,541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,862,626 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Baxter International in the 2nd quarter worth about $140,296,000. Shapiro Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Baxter International by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC now owns 3,285,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $109,885,000 after acquiring an additional 541,575 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $67,263,000. Finally, Coho Partners Ltd. purchased a new position in Baxter International during the third quarter valued at approximately $57,229,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Baxter International Company 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.