Baxter downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel

Stifel downgraded Baxter (BAX) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $25, down from $36. Despite recent positive portfolio transformation initiatives, Baxter’s “disappointing” Q2 performance, full-year guidance reduction, and the 2026 outlook leave the firm “feeling that the path to reliably-consistent mid-single-digit sales growth and more-meaningful margin expansion could take longer than previously-thought,” the analyst tells investors. As new CEO Andrew Hider takes the helm in early September), it seems clear that it’s likely to take time to navigate the current business challenges, the analyst added.