Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Now Covered by The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) in a research note released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $42.00 price objective on the medical instruments supplier’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Baxter International from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays assumed coverage on Baxter International in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $39.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Baxter International from $46.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Baxter International from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.00.

Baxter International Stock Performance

Shares of BAX stock opened at $35.22 on Wednesday. Baxter International has a 1-year low of $28.33 and a 1-year high of $44.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The company has a market capitalization of $18.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.08.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.06. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.67% and a negative net margin of 5.05%. The business had revenue of $2.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.67 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Baxter International will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio is currently -53.13%.

Institutional Trading of Baxter International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BAX. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 4th quarter worth about $365,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 4th quarter worth about $5,102,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 4th quarter worth about $2,193,000. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 4th quarter worth about $220,000. Finally, Parkwood LLC acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the 4th quarter worth about $10,747,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

About Baxter International

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.