Jacobs & Co. CA Sells 6,412 Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Jacobs & Co. CA decreased its holdings in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 36.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,219 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 6,412 shares during the period. Jacobs & Co. CA’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $433,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BAX. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its position in Baxter International by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 10,964 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $850,000 after purchasing an additional 2,535 shares during the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 281,374 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $21,818,000 after acquiring an additional 15,925 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 29.2% in the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Eudaimonia Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Baxter International in the 1st quarter worth approximately $340,000. Finally, KB Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. KB Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,815 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $373,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BAX has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Baxter International from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Bank of America raised 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. StockNews.com raised Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Baxter International from $45.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 4th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on Baxter International from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Baxter International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.18.

Baxter International Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE BAX opened at $42.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.18, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $40.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.97. Baxter International Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.01 and a 52-week high of $50.21.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.81 billion. Baxter International had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 17.77%. Baxter International’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 29th. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.

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.