Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC Sells 3,400 Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) by 15.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,900 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock after selling 3,400 shares during the period. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Baxter International were worth $551,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BAX. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC increased its position in Baxter International by 35.1% during the 4th quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 2,548,215 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $74,306,000 after buying an additional 662,042 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Baxter International by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,060 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 1,541 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 93.7% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,455 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $188,000 after acquiring an additional 3,123 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its position in shares of Baxter International by 41.1% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,319,274 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $39,037,000 after purchasing an additional 384,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. purchased a new position in shares of Baxter International in the 4th quarter worth about $188,000. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on BAX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Baxter International from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Argus upgraded shares of Baxter International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Baxter International in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Baxter International from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Baxter International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.56.

Baxter International Stock Performance

BAX stock opened at $34.64 on Friday. 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 1 year low of $28.34 and a 1 year high of $43.99. The company has a market cap of $17.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -27.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $32.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.00.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.67 billion. Baxter International had a positive return on equity of 16.67% and a negative net margin of 5.05%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -53.13%.

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.