Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) Releases FY24 Earnings Guidance

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) updated its FY24 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $2.88-$2.98 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $2.90. The company issued revenue guidance of $15.1 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $15.10 billion. Baxter International also updated its Q2 guidance to $0.65-$0.67 EPS.

Baxter International Price Performance

Shares of BAX traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $36.89. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,246,789 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,358,723. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $41.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.75. Baxter International has a fifty-two week low of $31.01 and a fifty-two week high of $50.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.09, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.64.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.55 billion. Baxter International had a net margin of 17.79% and a return on equity of 18.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Baxter International will post 2.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Baxter International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on BAX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Baxter International from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Baxter International from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Baxter International from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Baxter International from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Baxter International from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $46.30.

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.