By Nate Wolf

Shares of Baxter International fell sharply Thursday after the medical device company reported weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings and issued a dim outlook for 2026.

Baxter reported adjusted earnings of 44 cents a share for the fourth quarter, below analysts' consensus call for 52 cents. Sales totaled $2.97 billion, up from $2.75 billion last year and ahead of Wall Street's forecast of $2.83 billion.

Baxter stock tumbled 14% on Thursday, wiping out nearly all of its gains to start the year. It was the worst performer in the S&P 500 in the premarket session.

"While we delivered sales growth across all segments, our fourth-quarter results did not meet our expectations," said CEO Andrew Hider, adding that the company has a new operating model "designed to simplify our organization, accelerate innovation and improve performance."

Baxter expects adjusted earnings per share of $1.85 to $2.05 in 2026 and reported sales from continuing operations to be flat to up 1%. Analysts had expected adjusted earnings per share of $2.24 and sales growth closer to 2%.

Write to Nate Wolf at nate.wolf@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 12, 2026 08:03 ET (13:03 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.