Ballast Asset Management LP Sells 7,336 Shares of Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO)

Ballast Asset Management LP trimmed its position in shares of Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 213,987 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,336 shares during the quarter. Bausch + Lomb comprises about 2.2% of Ballast Asset Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Ballast Asset Management LP owned 0.06% of Bausch + Lomb worth $4,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 68.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Bausch + Lomb in the 4th quarter worth about $72,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC bought a new position in Bausch + Lomb during the 4th quarter valued at about $181,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. Finally, Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the third quarter worth approximately $289,000. 11.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BLCO. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Bausch + Lomb from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $15.00 price target (down from $24.00) on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.18.

Bausch + Lomb Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BLCO opened at $14.50 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.49. Bausch + Lomb Co. has a 1-year low of $13.16 and a 1-year high of $21.69. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $16.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $18.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.24 EPS. Bausch + Lomb’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Bausch + Lomb Co. will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bausch + Lomb Profile

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.