Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Given New $85.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX – Get Rating) had its target price dropped by Citigroup from $98.00 to $85.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday, The Fly reports. Citigroup’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 15.35% from the stock’s previous close.

BAX has been the topic of several other reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Baxter International from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 18th. TheStreet lowered shares of Baxter International from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Baxter International from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $88.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Monday, April 4th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Baxter International in a research report on Tuesday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.69.

Baxter International stock opened at $73.69 on Tuesday. Baxter International has a fifty-two week low of $69.71 and a fifty-two week high of $89.70. The stock has a market cap of $37.11 billion, a PE ratio of 35.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.62. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.10.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 28th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.13. Baxter International had a net margin of 7.80% and a return on equity of 21.59%. The business had revenue of $3.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Baxter International will post 4.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In related news, Director Albert P. L. Stroucken sold 4,020 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.02, for a total transaction of $305,600.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,100,356.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Brian Stevens sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.50, for a total transaction of $213,750.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its stake in Baxter International by 29.2% during the first quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $114,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC grew its stake in Baxter International by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 281,374 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $21,818,000 after buying an additional 15,925 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in Baxter International by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 10,964 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $850,000 after buying an additional 2,535 shares in the last quarter. Banco de Sabadell S.A grew its stake in Baxter International by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Banco de Sabadell S.A now owns 20,247 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,567,000 after buying an additional 945 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Baxter International by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 39,502 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $3,063,000 after buying an additional 1,284 shares in the last quarter. 86.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Baxter International Company Profile (Get Rating)

Baxter International Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops and provides a portfolio of healthcare products worldwide. The company offers peritoneal dialysis and hemodialysis, and additional dialysis therapies and services; intravenous therapies, infusion pumps, administration sets, and drug reconstitution devices; remixed and oncology drug platforms, inhaled anesthesia and critical care products and pharmacy compounding services; parenteral nutrition therapies and related products; biological products and medical devices used in surgical procedures for hemostasis, tissue sealing and adhesion prevention; and continuous renal replacement therapies and other organ support therapies focused in the intensive care unit.

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