Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) Cut to Neutral at HC Wainwright

HC Wainwright lowered shares of Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report released on Monday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $22.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $21.00. HC Wainwright also issued estimates for Bausch + Lomb’s Q4 2026 earnings at $0.34 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.16 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.29 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.25 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.35 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $1.05 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on BLCO. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Barclays upgraded Bausch + Lomb to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Bausch + Lomb from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.83.

Bausch + Lomb Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of Bausch + Lomb stock opened at $20.59 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $17.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a PE ratio of -66.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.52. Bausch + Lomb has a 1 year low of $14.44 and a 1 year high of $21.36.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.13. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 2.05% and a positive return on equity of 5.01%. The company had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.18 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Bausch + Lomb

In other news, Director Eschenbach Andrew C. Von sold 6,059 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.58, for a total value of $100,458.22. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 63,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,056,693.14. The trade was a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Frederick Munsch sold 112,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total transaction of $2,294,067.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 45,831 shares in the company, valued at $938,618.88. This represents a 70.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 170,974 shares of company stock valued at $3,282,187. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Beach Point Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the third quarter worth about $5,882,000. Whitebox Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Bausch + Lomb by 15.8% during the 1st quarter. Whitebox Advisors LLC now owns 1,101,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,519,000 after purchasing an additional 150,641 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new position in Bausch + Lomb during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,479,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Bausch + Lomb by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 139,266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,214,000 after purchasing an additional 69,633 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new position in Bausch + Lomb during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $670,000. 11.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Bausch + Lomb

Here are the key news stories impacting Bausch + Lomb this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Growth and debt reduction: Recent results showed revenue up 8% on a constant-currency basis to $1.375 billion, while the company’s net leverage ratio declined to 4.1 times from 5.7 times. Earnings also beat consensus, supporting the positive outlook. Bausch + Lomb: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Higher earnings forecasts: HC Wainwright raised several quarterly estimates and lifted its 2027 EPS forecast to $1.05 from $0.89. Upward estimate revisions can support investor expectations for future growth. Bausch + Lomb analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum and estimate revisions: Zacks said improving earnings estimates could help the shares continue higher in the near term, adding to positive momentum. Why Bausch + Lomb Might Be Well Poised for a Surge
• Neutral Sentiment: Cautious analyst rating: HC Wainwright’s rating was lowered to Neutral, despite its higher earnings forecasts and $22 price target, tempering the otherwise constructive analyst outlook. Bausch + Lomb Stock Rating Lowered by HC Wainwright
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sale: Chief Accounting Officer Frederick Munsch sold 112,015 shares for about $2.29 million, cutting his holdings by roughly 71%. The sale may raise investor concern, though insider transactions do not necessarily signal a change in business outlook. Bausch + Lomb CAO Sells Shares

Bausch + Lomb Company Profile

Bausch + Lomb Corporation (NYSE: BLCO) is a global eye-health company that develops, manufactures and markets products for vision care, ophthalmic pharmaceuticals and eye surgery. The company serves consumers, eye-care professionals, hospitals and surgical centers through a portfolio spanning contact lenses, contact-lens care products, prescription medicines, over-the-counter eye-care products and surgical equipment.

Its vision-care portfolio includes the Biotrue and INFUSE contact-lens brands, as well as solutions and other products used to clean and maintain contact lenses.