Brokerages Set Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) PT at $19.80

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have given a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $19.80.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore lowered their target price on Baxter International from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Baxter International in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Baxter International from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Baxter International from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Baxter International from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th.

Baxter International Stock Performance

Shares of Baxter International stock opened at $17.13 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $18.72 and a 200 day moving average of $19.59. Baxter International has a 12 month low of $15.73 and a 12 month high of $32.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.56.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.09). Baxter International had a negative net margin of 8.51% and a positive return on equity of 16.95%. The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.58 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Baxter International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.850-2.050 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Baxter International will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.01 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Baxter International’s payout ratio is currently -2.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Baxter International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BAX. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Baxter International during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Baxter International during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in Baxter International during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in Baxter International during the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. 90.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Baxter International

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its Q4 2026 EPS view to $0.61 (from $0.59), a modest upside for the late‑year quarter.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks also nudged its FY2028 EPS estimate higher to $2.17 (from $2.12), signaling slightly improved longer‑term expectations.
• Neutral Sentiment: Baxter scheduled its Q1 2026 earnings call for Apr 30 — a key event for fresh revenue and margin details. Conference Call Announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut multiple near‑term quarterly EPS estimates (Q1–Q3 2026 and Q1–Q3 2027) and lowered FY2026 to $1.88 (from $1.93) and FY2027 to $2.02 (from $2.08); the firm retains a “Hold” rating — pressure on near‑term growth expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Evercore trimmed its price target on BAX to $22. Evercore Price Target Cut
• Negative Sentiment: Baxter’s FY2026 EPS guidance of $1.85–$2.05 sits slightly below the consensus midpoint (~$1.93); revenue guidance ~$11.2B–$11.4B is roughly in line but the lower EPS range reinforces investor caution.

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.