Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $16.97 and last traded at $17.0250, with a volume of 4379507 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $17.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $30.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Baxter International from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Baxter International from $19.00 to $15.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Baxter International from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.90.

Baxter International Trading Down 1.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The business’s 50-day moving average is $20.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.59. The firm has a market cap of $8.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.58.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.09). Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.95% and a negative net margin of 8.51%.The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Baxter International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.850-2.050 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio is presently -2.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Baxter International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Baxter International in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Baxter International during the third quarter worth $27,000. MTM Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Baxter International in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new position in shares of Baxter International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

About Baxter International

Baxter International Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products, pharmaceutical therapies and biotechnology-based solutions. The company’s primary business activities are organized around renal care, medication delivery, acute therapies, pharmacy automation, surgical care and biotechnology. Baxter’s offerings are designed to support patient care in hospitals, dialysis centers, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities worldwide.

In the renal care segment, Baxter provides hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis systems, water treatment equipment and related disposables, including dialyzers, bloodlines and catheters.