Huntington National Bank Lowers Position in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Huntington National Bank reduced its stake in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 12.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,036 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,906 shares during the quarter. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $1,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First PREMIER Bank bought a new position in shares of Baxter International during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Baxter International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Baxter International in the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Baxter International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Baxter International by 974.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,332 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,208 shares during the last quarter. 90.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Baxter International Stock Up 0.8 %

Baxter International stock opened at $31.96 on Friday. Baxter International Inc. has a 1-year low of $31.60 and a 1-year high of $44.01. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $36.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 159.81, a PEG ratio of 10.40 and a beta of 0.60.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 0.77%. The company’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 580.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BAX shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Baxter International from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $46.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Baxter International from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Baxter International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.91.

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.