Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.00.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BLCO shares. Bank of America reduced their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Bausch + Lomb from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $19.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th.

Bausch + Lomb Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of BLCO opened at $16.00 on Monday. Bausch + Lomb has a fifty-two week low of $13.16 and a fifty-two week high of $21.69. The firm has a market cap of $5.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.58, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $17.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.60.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.02. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 6.62% and a positive return on equity of 3.35%. The business had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Bausch + Lomb

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. River Road Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,020,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,974,000 after acquiring an additional 85,987 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Bausch + Lomb by 80.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 29,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 13,302 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new position in Bausch + Lomb in the third quarter worth $302,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Bausch + Lomb during the third quarter valued at $870,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 24,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 3,164 shares in the last quarter. 11.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Bausch + Lomb

Bausch + Lomb Corporation operates as an eye health company in the United States, Puerto Rico, China, France, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, Spain, Italy, Mexico, Poland, South Korea, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Vision Care, Pharmaceuticals, and Surgical. The Vision Care segment provides contact lens that covers the spectrum of wearing modalities, including daily disposable and frequently replaced contact lenses; and contact lens care products comprising over-the-counter eye drops, eye vitamins, and mineral supplements that address various conditions, such as eye allergies, conjunctivitis, dry eye, and redness relief.