Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) Receives “Equal Weight” Rating from Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company restated their equal weight rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has a $15.00 target price on the stock, down from their previous target price of $24.00.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of Bausch + Lomb from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $24.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Bausch + Lomb from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $19.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.18.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Performance

Bausch + Lomb stock opened at $14.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.49. Bausch + Lomb has a 1-year low of $13.16 and a 1-year high of $21.69. The company’s 50-day moving average is $16.23 and its 200 day moving average is $18.07.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last issued 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 positive return on equity of 3.35% and a negative net margin of 6.62%. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.24 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.74 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 68.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC purchased a new position in Bausch + Lomb in the fourth quarter worth $181,000. Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the fourth quarter worth $181,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb during the 4th quarter valued at $188,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

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.