CluenexBaxter International BAX
Baxter International scores weak on business quality (2.6 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Baxter International does
Baxter International makes medical devices and therapies, including hospital products and renal care systems, selling directly to healthcare providers globally. The company is working to restructure its portfolio and manage high debt levels following past divestitures.
- What it does best
Baxter dominates hospital infusion systems through massive installed hardware. Its gross margin of 30.7% sits in the bottom quartile of its sector, trailing peers like RMD at 61.1% due to manufacturing and cost pressures.
- The main risk
Heavy debt load with $9.5 billion in total debt and an interest coverage ratio of 1.7x leaves little margin for operational missteps.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margin sits at 4.4% and ROE is -16.6%, reflecting severe earnings dilution that scales struggle to absorb.
Switching costs anchor its hospital hardware base, though its gross margin sector percentile of 11 highlights limited pricing power.
Revenue grew 5.7% to $11.5 billion, showing a slight recovery compared to historical declines from past divestitures.
Carries $7.5 billion in net debt and weak interest coverage of 1.7x, generating $815 million in free cash flow, keeping the balance sheet fragile.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on BAX
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Baxter International scores weak on the Cluenex quality check (2.6 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is weak, moat weak, growth slow and financial health weak.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Oct 29, 2026.
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Cite this page: Cluenex, “Baxter International (BAX)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/bax/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.