Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Stock Price Down 5.2% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) traded down 5.2% during trading on Tuesday after Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong sell rating. The company traded as low as $21.16 and last traded at $21.4030. 702,263 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 8,458,267 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.57.

Several other research analysts have also commented on BAX. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Baxter International from $17.00 to $19.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Baxter International in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Citigroup lowered Baxter International from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $19.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Baxter International from $22.00 to $20.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Baxter International from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $19.91.

Key Baxter International News

Here are the key news stories impacting Baxter International this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Baxter to $21 from $19, indicating a somewhat better outlook even though the firm kept a neutral rating. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Technical coverage noted a golden cross in Baxter’s chart, which may support buying interest from traders focused on trend signals. AbbVie vs Baxter: One Golden Cross Is Real, One Is a Trap
• Neutral Sentiment: Baxter announced updates to its segment reporting structure and metrics, but the headline appears mainly operational and not clearly tied to a major earnings or guidance change. Baxter International Updates Segment Reporting Structure and Metrics
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research cut earnings estimates across multiple periods, including FY2026, FY2027, and Q2/Q3 2026, signaling softer profit expectations for Baxter International (NYSE: BAX). Zacks.com
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks also downgraded Baxter from hold to strong sell, reinforcing a more cautious view on the stock. Zacks.com

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 98.3% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 33,909 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $723,000 after buying an additional 16,809 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Baxter International by 552.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,413 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 2,043 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Baxter International by 3.2% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 41,709 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $701,000 after acquiring an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Baxter International by 35.6% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,720 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 1,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its stake in Baxter International by 0.6% in the first quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 498,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $8,366,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Baxter International Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $11.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.62 billion. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.15% and a negative net margin of 9.70%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Baxter International Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.01 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio is currently -1.88%.

About Baxter International

Baxter International Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of medical products, pharmaceutical therapies and biotechnology-based solutions. The company’s primary business activities are organized around renal care, medication delivery, acute therapies, pharmacy automation, surgical care and biotechnology. Baxter’s offerings are designed to support patient care in hospitals, dialysis centers, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities worldwide.

In the renal care segment, Baxter provides hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis systems, water treatment equipment and related disposables, including dialyzers, bloodlines and catheters.