Court Place Advisors LLC Trims Stake in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Court Place Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 25.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 10,493 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,493 shares during the period. Court Place Advisors LLC’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $406,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 10,836,563 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $408,992,000 after buying an additional 1,098,787 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,971,166 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $362,919,000 after buying an additional 170,213 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 69.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,491,343 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $244,983,000 after buying an additional 2,650,959 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baxter International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $215,935,000. Finally, Carmignac Gestion grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 467.0% in the 3rd quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 4,848,773 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $182,992,000 after buying an additional 3,993,537 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Baxter International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BAX traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $39.51. 2,809,447 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,712,821. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $41.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.57, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.48. Baxter International Inc. has a one year low of $31.01 and a one year high of $50.21.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.81 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 17.77%. The company’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The business 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 of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on BAX. Barclays upped their price target on Baxter International from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Citigroup upped their price target on 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 Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Baxter International from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Baxter International from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Baxter International has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.30.

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.