Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) Upgraded to Overweight at Morgan Stanley

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) was upgraded by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $18.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $16.00. Morgan Stanley’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 32.35% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Evercore reduced their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $17.00 to $15.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Bausch + Lomb from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.45.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of BLCO opened at $13.60 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $15.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.70. Bausch + Lomb has a 1 year low of $13.16 and a 1 year high of $21.95.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. Bausch + Lomb had a negative net margin of 7.81% and a positive return on equity of 3.60%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BLCO. Black Swift Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 3rd quarter worth about $170,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 3rd quarter worth about $255,000. Renaissance Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb by 27.3% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Capital LLC now owns 22,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 4,801 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 3rd quarter valued at about $466,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,706,000. 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.