Private Trust Co. NA Lowers Stake in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Private Trust Co. NA lessened its holdings in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 14.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,084 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 848 shares during the quarter. Private Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $140,296,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Baxter International by 73.2% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,772,533 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $226,541,000 after acquiring an additional 2,862,626 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the second quarter worth $67,263,000. Coho Partners Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Baxter International during the third quarter valued at $57,229,000. Finally, Shapiro Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 19.7% in the 2nd quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC now owns 3,285,048 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $109,885,000 after purchasing an additional 541,575 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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 report 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 report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Baxter International from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Baxter International from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.91.

Baxter International Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of BAX stock opened at $33.31 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.60. The stock has a market cap of $17.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 166.56, a P/E/G ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 0.60. Baxter International Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.60 and a 12 month 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.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.02. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 0.77%. The company had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.85 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. Baxter International’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Baxter International Inc. will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 580.03%.

Baxter International Company 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.