ARGA Investment Management LP Boosts Holdings in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

ARGA Investment Management LP increased its position in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 148.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 870,601 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after buying an additional 520,633 shares during the quarter. Baxter International comprises approximately 0.8% of ARGA Investment Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. ARGA Investment Management LP owned about 0.17% of Baxter International worth $25,387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Baxter International by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,156,660 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $460,022,000 after purchasing an additional 170,776 shares during the period. Coho Partners Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Baxter International during the 3rd quarter worth about $57,229,000. National Pension Service raised its holdings in Baxter International by 22.1% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,154,616 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $43,841,000 after buying an additional 208,726 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in Baxter International by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,139,074 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $43,251,000 after buying an additional 12,773 shares during the period. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden boosted its stake in Baxter International by 140.5% during the fourth quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 273,900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,987,000 after buying an additional 160,000 shares during the period. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Baxter International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup cut their target price on Baxter International from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Baxter International from $46.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.45.

Baxter International Trading Down 0.7 %

BAX opened at $31.43 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $30.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.09. Baxter International Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.33 and a 12 month high of $44.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 157.13, a PEG ratio of 10.39 and a beta of 0.61.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 0.77%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Baxter International Inc. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 340.02%.

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.