California Public Employees Retirement System Has $119.69 Million Holdings in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

California Public Employees Retirement System cut its stake in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,095,910 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 55,605 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $119,688,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in Baxter International by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,797 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 8.2% in the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 4,214 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,222 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $202,000 after buying an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 10.1% in the third quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 4,774 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $180,000 after buying an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 76.6% in the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,439 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Baxter International Price Performance

BAX stock opened at $41.03 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.86, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. Baxter International Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.01 and a 12-month high of $50.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.49.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.02. Baxter International had a net margin of 17.77% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on BAX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Baxter International from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Baxter International from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Baxter International from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.30.

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.