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BAX

S&P 500
Weak · 18/100

Baxter International

Health Care
Health Care Equipment

$27.24

0.9%

Updated Aug 7, 11:30 AM ET

Report Card

BAX at a glance — five pillars scored 0–100 from real filed financials.

Value
0
Growth
0
Profitability
0
Health
0
Dividends
0

Overall: Weak · 18/100. A wider, greener shape means more pillars look healthy. Dividends scores 0 when a company pays none — that is a choice, not a flaw.

Price — Past Year

▼ Down 33.3% over the last 12 months

Price 50-day average 200-day averageSource: Yahoo Finance · refreshed daily
Key Metrics

Market Cap

$11.70B

P/E

Forward P/E (est.)

ROE

-16.4%

Revenue Growth

-4.8%

EPS Growth

Profit Margin

-9.7%

FCF Yield

12.7%

Debt / Equity

1.55x

ROIC

-2.0%

Interest Coverage

Current Ratio

1.85x

Dividend Yield

0.2%

Implied Growth (rev. DCF)

6.0%

Rating Score

18/100

Business Overview
Research

Baxter International (BAX) is a large-cap company in the Health Care Equipment industry, part of the Health Care sector of the S&P 500, with a market value around $11.70B.

In its latest reported year it generated about $11.24B in revenue and posted a net loss of $957.00M.

Our model rates BAX Weak (18/100) on growth, profitability, financial health, and valuation. The summary below is built from its filed financials and current ratios and refreshes automatically.

Economic Moat

Evidence of durable competitive advantage in the filed financials (10 years of history).

Narrow moat signalsMoat evidence score: 58/100

Some durable-advantage evidence, but not across the board — dig into which ingredient is weak and whether it's cyclical or structural.

Gross margin level40/100

35.9% average over the last 3 years

Gross margin stability54/100

±3.7 pts around 38.9% across 10 years

Revenue durability89/100

grew in 8 of the last 9 year-over-year periods

Free-cash-flow consistency100/100

positive in 10 of 10 years

Return on invested capital0/100

-2.0% latest fiscal year

A moat can't be proven by numbers alone — this scores the evidence a durable advantage leaves behind (pricing power, consistency, returns on capital), computed the same way for every stock. Pair it with the business overview before concluding anything.

Technical Analysis (Educational)
Research

Technical analysis reads price and volume to judge momentum and timing. It complements the fundamentals above — it does not replace them. Here is what BAX's chart says today, with each tool explained.

Trend — moving averages. A moving average is the average closing price over a window, which smooths out daily noise. BAX trades near $27.24, above its 50-day average ($19.09) and 200-day average ($19.56). Price above both averages, with the shorter one above the longer, is the textbook definition of an uptrend — momentum favours buyers.

Momentum — RSI. The Relative Strength Index runs 0–100 and measures how strong recent gains are versus losses. Above 70 is "overbought", below 30 "oversold". At 65 it is in neutral territory — neither stretched nor washed out.

MACD. MACD compares two moving averages to flag shifts in momentum. Its histogram is currently positive — short-term momentum is improving.

Volatility — ATR. Average True Range is the typical daily move. BAX's is $0.73 (~2.7% of price), so swings of about that size each day are normal — handy for setting a stop that isn't too tight.

Support & resistance. Over the last month BAX found buyers near $18.90 (support) and sellers near $22.76 (resistance); its 52-week range is $15.73–$31.44. A decisive break beyond either edge often marks the next move.

Volume. The latest session traded 0.9× the 20-day average — about normal. Rising volume on up-days suggests real buying; on down-days, real selling.

Educational information to help you read a chart — not a recommendation or a forecast. It updates daily as the price and indicators change.

Revenue Growth
Research

4Y CAGR

-1.9%

0/2 checks passedRevenue growingRevenue growth beats sector midpoint

Revenue moved from $10.16B in 2016 to $11.24B in 2025, a 1.1% compound annual growth rate. The most recent year declined 4.8% year over year. Shrinking revenue is worth a closer look — is it cyclical or structural?

Profitability
Research
0/4 checks passedProfitableNet margin above sector midpointROE above 12%ROIC above 10%

Gross Margin

30.1%

Operating Margin

-2.7%

Net Margin

-8.5%

ROE

-16.4%

Baxter International keeps about -9.7% of each sales dollar as net profit, with a 30.1% gross margin and -2.7% operating margin. Return on equity is -16.4% and return on invested capital about -2.0%. The company is currently unprofitable on a net basis.

Debt Analysis
Research
2/3 checks passedDebt under 1× equityDebt under 2× equityShort-term bills covered

Total Debt

$9.44B

Net Debt

$7.42B

Net Debt / EBITDA

Debt / Equity

1.55x

Leverage: debt-to-equity is 1.5x, with a current ratio of 1.9x. That is elevated leverage, which raises risk if earnings or rates move against it. It carries roughly $9.44B of total debt against $2.02B of cash.

Cash Flow Analysis
Research
3/3 checks passedPositive free cash flowFCF yield above 2%Market expects achievable growth (<8%)

Operating CF

$845.00M

Free Cash Flow

$332.00M

FCF Margin

3.0%

In the latest year Baxter International produced about $845.00M of operating cash flow and $332.00M of free cash flow after capital spending. That is a free-cash-flow yield of about 12.7% on today's price. Strong cash generation funds dividends, buybacks, and reinvestment.

Dividend Safety

Can the payout survive a bad year? Scored from filed cash flow, earnings coverage, and the raise/cut record.

At RiskSafety score: 0/100

Coverage is weak, the payout was cut recently, or it's being financed rather than earned — treat the current yield as fragile.

Dividend yield

0.2%

Per share (latest FY)

$0.52

Total paid (latest FY)

$348.00M

History on record

10 years

Free-cash-flow coverage0/100

dividend uses 105% of free cash flow

Raise streak0/100

no current raise streak

Cut history0/100

payout was cut at least once in the last 10 years

Coverage uses the latest fiscal year as filed with the SEC; the streak counts total dollars paid (per-share figures can carry split artifacts). Educational information, not income advice.

Valuation Analysis
Research
0/1 checks passedTrading below DCF fair value

P/E

P/S

0.94x

P/B

2.13x

EV / EBITDA

BAX trades at n/a trailing earnings, 0.9x sales, and 2.1x book value. Reverse-engineering today's price implies the market expects roughly 6.0% long-term free-cash-flow growth. With no positive trailing earnings, value it on sales, cash flow, or growth rather than P/E.

DCF Fair Value (Educational)

A two-stage discounted cash flow on real SEC-filed free cash flow — the intrinsic-value anchor professional analysts triangulate from.

DCF fair value / share

$6.68

Current price

$27.24

-75% · Above fair-value estimate

Starting FCF (latest 10-K)

$332.00M

Growth, years 1–5

-4.8%

Fade to terminal, years 6–10

2.5%

Discount rate

9.0%

PV of 10-yr free cash flow$1.76B
PV of terminal value$1.69B
Estimated equity value$3.45B
Shares outstanding516M

Cash flows grow at the stage-1 rate (trailing revenue growth, capped at 20%) for five years, fade to 2.5% by year 10, and continue at that rate forever (Gordon terminal value), all discounted at 9.0%. Small changes in assumptions move the result a lot — treat this as one reference point, not a target price. Educational only, not investment advice.

Metrics vs. Sector Range

Where BAX sits versus its Health Care sector peers in the S&P 500.

TTM P/E
Forward P/E
P/S ratio
0.9xCheap
Revenue growth
-4.8%Weak
EPS growth
Gross margin
30.1%Weak
Net margin
-9.7%Weak
ROE
-16.4%Weak

Bands show the middle half (25th–75th percentile) of the 83 Health Care companies in the S&P 500 — the peer-relative anchor professional comps analysis uses. Context only — not investment advice.

Sector Peer Comparison

How BAX stacks up against its Health Care peers — valuation, profitability, and growth versus the sector median.

In the Health Care sector (324 S&P 500 companies), BAX ranks #82 of 324 by our overall rating.

P/E vs sector

median 27.3x

ROE vs sector

-16.4%

median 14.1%

Growth vs sector

-4.8%

median 7.6%

Sector rank

#82

of 324 by rating

CompanyP/ERev Gr.Rating
BAXThis stock-4.8%Weak· 18
PODD32x31.9%Neutral· 52
RVTY53.7x4.8%Weak· 33
ZBH24.4x9.2%Neutral· 50
STE29.2x8.7%Favorable· 59
DXCM34.9x16.1%Favorable· 70
GEHC17.4x6.0%Neutral· 51
RMD20.4x10.3%Strong· 75
Health Care median27.3x7.6%0/100

Valuation vs. quality map

sector medianPODDRVTYZBHSTEDXCMGEHCRMDP/E — cheaper ←→ pricierROE — more profitable ↑

The sweet spot is upper-left: more profitable (higher ROE) for a lower P/E. Dashed lines mark the sector median.

Compare side by side

Peers are the closest Health Care companies by sub-industry and size. Sector median is across all 324 S&P 500 names in the sector. Educational, not a recommendation.

5-Year Projection Model

Project revenue → earnings → price. Edit the assumptions to build your own case.

2030 price target (Base Case)

$0.00 $0.00

vs. $27.24 today · expected CAGR -17%-8%

Metric20262027202820292030
Revenue$11.58B$11.93B$12.29B$12.66B$13.03B
Net income$347.44M$357.86M$368.60M$379.66M$391.05M
EPS$0.81$0.83$0.86$0.88$0.91
Share price (low)$9.71$10.00$10.30$10.61$10.93
Share price (high)$16.18$16.67$17.17$17.68$18.21
CAGR (low–high)-64% / -41%-39% / -22%-28% / -14%-21% / -10%-17% / -8%

Educational model on sample fundamentals — not a forecast or investment advice. Outputs are only as good as your assumptions.

Bull Case

The case for BAX:

  • Healthy free-cash-flow yield (~12.7%) funds buybacks and dividends.
  • As an established S&P 500 member in Health Care, it brings scale and a long operating history.
Bear Case

The case against BAX:

  • Revenue growth is slow/negative (-4.8%), limiting the upside engine.
  • Thin net margins (-9.7%) leave little room for error.
  • Elevated leverage (debt/equity 1.5x) adds financial risk.
  • Our model's overall read is Weak (18/100).
Key Risks
Research

Balance-sheet risk — debt/equity of 1.5x magnifies the impact of higher rates or weaker earnings.

Growth risk — sluggish revenue (-4.8%) leaves little margin for execution missteps.

Margin risk — thin profitability (-9.7%) is vulnerable to cost or pricing pressure.

Market risk — sector rotation, the economic cycle, and broad sentiment move the stock regardless of fundamentals.

Investment Thesis
Research

On balance, the fundamentals screen weakly: Baxter International is a large-cap health care business with shrinking revenue, with modest profitability, and a heavier debt load to watch. It trades at n/a earnings, which our model scores Weak (18/100). Weigh this against your own goals and time horizon — this is educational information, not a recommendation.

Analyst Ratings

What 20 Wall Street analysts covering BAX recommend (August 2026). Consensus is a useful sanity check — not a substitute for your own homework.

Hold
consensus · score 3.3 / 5 across 20 analysts
Strong Buy 1Buy 4Hold 14Sell 1Strong Sell 0

Latest SEC Filings

BAX's most recent filings, straight from SEC EDGAR. Annual and quarterly reports are the deep dives; 8-Ks flag material events the moment they happen.

BAX — frequently asked questions

Is BAX a good stock to buy?

We don't give buy or sell advice. Our model rates Baxter International Weak (18/100) based on its growth, profitability, financial health, and valuation — use that as a research starting point and make your own decision.

What is BAX's rating on The Stocks School?

Baxter International currently scores 18/100 (Weak) on our transparent model, which weighs real fundamentals: growth, margins, returns on capital, balance-sheet strength, and valuation.

How our ratings work
Where does BAX's data come from?

Live price data plus real fundamentals and 5-year financials pulled directly from Baxter International's SEC filings — refreshed automatically, not hand-entered.

How is the 5-year projection for BAX calculated?

It's a scenario model: it grows revenue at an assumed rate, applies a profit margin and a valuation multiple, and shows the resulting share-price range. The assumptions are yours to change — it's a tool for thinking, not a prediction.

Is this BAX analysis financial advice?

No. Everything on this page is educational research, not financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell BAX. Always do your own research and consider a licensed professional.

Data notice. Fundamentals and financial statements are sourced from company filings (SEC EDGAR) and market-data providers; prices and market caps refresh on trading days and may be delayed. Ratings, projections, technical signals, and written summaries are model- or rule-generated for education and may simplify or lag the latest filings.

Not advice. Nothing on this page is investment advice or a recommendation to buy, hold, or sell any security. Do your own research and consult a licensed financial professional before investing.