Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) Short Interest Down 29.5% in February

Bausch + Lomb Co. (NYSE:BLCO) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,220,000 shares, a drop of 29.5% from the January 31st total of 1,730,000 shares. Approximately 3.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 580,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days.

Bausch + Lomb Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:BLCO traded up $0.01 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $15.87. 541,597 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 665,976. Bausch + Lomb has a 1-year low of $13.16 and a 1-year high of $21.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $17.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $18.18. 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 cap of $5.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.46.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bausch + Lomb

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on BLCO shares. Citigroup downgraded shares of Bausch + Lomb from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of 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 lowered Bausch + Lomb from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $19.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Bausch + Lomb in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Bausch + Lomb from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bausch + Lomb has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.00.

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.