Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) Lifted to “Overweight” at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research report report published on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $18.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $16.00.

BLCO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. HC Wainwright reiterated a buy rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Needham & Company LLC restated a hold rating on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore decreased their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $17.00 to $15.00 and set an in-line rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $19.45.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of BLCO opened at $14.81 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.43, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.47. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $15.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Bausch + Lomb has a 52 week low of $13.16 and a 52 week high of $21.95.

Bausch + Lomb (NYSE:BLCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. Bausch + Lomb had a positive return on equity of 3.60% and a negative net margin of 7.81%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bausch + Lomb will post 0.66 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Black Swift Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bausch + Lomb in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $170,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb in the third quarter valued at $255,000. Fore Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb in the first quarter valued at $384,000. Renaissance Capital LLC raised its stake in Bausch + Lomb by 27.3% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Capital LLC now owns 22,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,000 after buying an additional 4,801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Bausch + Lomb in the third quarter valued at $466,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Bausch + Lomb Company 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.