Anchor Investment Management LLC Purchases 9,043 Shares of Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)

Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX - Free Report) by 79.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,463 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after acquiring an additional 9,043 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC's holdings in Baxter International were worth $597,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Baxter International by 55.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 30,264 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $882,000 after acquiring an additional 10,768 shares in the last quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Baxter International by 115,259.6% in the 4th quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 65,755 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $1,917,000 after purchasing an additional 65,698 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Baxter International by 40.4% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,745,709 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $50,904,000 after purchasing an additional 502,370 shares in the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Baxter International during the fourth quarter valued at about $157,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Baxter International by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,446,939 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $362,006,000 after buying an additional 290,279 shares in the last quarter. 90.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Baxter International Stock Performance

Shares of BAX traded up $1.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $28.90. 5,523,443 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,539,831. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.43. Baxter International Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.25 and a 1 year high of $41.18. The stock has a market cap of $14.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $32.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.66.

Baxter International (NYSE:BAX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.75 billion during 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Baxter International Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Baxter International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. Baxter International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -53.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BAX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Baxter International from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Baxter International in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. They set a "buy" rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Barclays lifted 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. Finally, Argus raised shares of Baxter International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Baxter International has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.56.

About Baxter International

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.