Should I Buy BHC? BHC 2026 Analysis

Should You Buy Bausch Health Companies Inc (BHC) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Conclusion

Hold

Latest Price

5.880

1 Day change

2.62%

52 Week Range

8.690

Analysis Updated At

2026/02/04

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Not a good buy right now for an impatient investor: the stock is technically oversold and can bounce, but there is no proprietary buy signal and the fundamental/news flow is still negative.
Price is sitting just above near-term support (~5.60). If that level fails, downside risk opens toward ~5.29 before any durable reversal.
Options positioning is cautious (put-heavy open interest), suggesting investors are still hedging rather than confidently buying the dip.

Intellectia Proprietary Trading Signals

AI Stock Picker: No signal on given stock today.
SwingMax: No signal on given stock recently.

Technical Analysis

Trend/Momentum: MACD histogram is negative (-0.125) but contracting, implying bearish momentum is easing (possible stabilization, not a confirmed reversal).
RSI: RSI(6) at ~22.3 indicates deeply oversold conditions (bounce potential), but oversold can persist without a catalyst.
Moving averages: Converging MAs suggest indecision/transition, not a clear uptrend.
Key levels: Price ~5.65 is below the pivot (6.108), so the broader technical posture remains bearish-to-neutral.
- Support: S1 5.602 (immediate), S2 5.289 (next)
- Resistance: R1 6.614 then R2 6.927
Pattern-based forward stats (provided): modest short-term drift (next day slightly negative), but improves over 1 month (+5.24%)—consistent with “oversold bounce” rather than a strong trend change.

Options Data

Bearish

Open Interest Put-Call Ratio

Bullish

Option Volume Put-Call Ratio

Sentiment read:
- Open interest put/call = 1.57 is bearish/defensive (more puts outstanding than calls).
- Volume put/call = 0.06 is bullish for today’s flow (calls dominating today’s trading), hinting at short-term dip-buying/speculation.
Volatility: 30D IV ~~65% vs HV ~58% (elevated). Volume vs 30D average is very high (~~32.7x), indicating heightened event/speculation.
Takeaway: mixed tape—near-term speculative call buying, but the outstanding positioning remains cautious (hedging still heavy).

Technical Summary

Sell

Buy

Positive Catalysts

- Asset value / monetization narrative: the 88% stake in Bausch + Lomb reportedly valued far above BHC’s market cap, supporting a “sum-of-the-parts” floor if monetization actions occur.
- Potential product opportunities noted in news: skin-tightening treatment and hepatitis treatment (acquired from Durect) could become incremental growth drivers.
- Upcoming catalyst: QDEC 2025 earnings on 2026-02-18 after hours (event risk, but also a potential reset point if guidance/strategy improves).

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

- Failed Phase 3 trial to expand Xifaxan label (RED-C) is a direct negative catalyst and weakens the growth bridge ahead of the patent cliff.
- Patent/LOE overhang: market concern around Xifaxan exclusivity loss (news mentions 2029; analyst commentary highlights pressure into 2027+), keeping valuation capped.
- Shares already down sharply YTD (~-17% per news), reflecting impaired confidence and “sell the rally” risk until a clear strategic catalyst materializes.
- Trading trends: hedge funds and insiders are neutral—no supportive “smart money” accumulation signal in the provided data.

Financial Performance

Latest quarter: 2025/Q3
- Revenue: $2.681B, +6.81% YoY (top-line growth is positive).
- Net income: $179M, down -310.59% YoY (sharp deterioration).
- EPS: 0.48, down -308.70% YoY (profitability trend negative).
- Gross margin: 62.59%, +2.02% YoY (core margin improved, but not flowing through to bottom line).
Summary: revenue and gross margin improved, but earnings quality/profitability trends are currently the problem and align with the market’s cautious stance.

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

Current Street tone in the provided notes: largely Neutral/Hold.
Recent changes:
- Truist (2026-01-07): PT raised to $8 from $7, maintained Hold.
- Truist (2026-01-23): reiterated Hold / $8 while highlighting the Phase 3 miss and increased pressure on post-Xifaxan options.
- Barclays (2025-12-08): initiated Equal Weight with $8 PT.
Wall Street pros vs cons (from notes/news):
- Pros: potential value via Bausch + Lomb stake/monetization; sector sentiment improving; “affordable medicines” theme.
- Cons: pipeline setback (RED-C), uncertainty in replacing Xifaxan economics, and the patent-cliff overhang keeps conviction muted.
Politicians/Congress: no recent congress trading data available (no signal from that channel).

4 Analyst Rating

Wall Street analysts forecast BHC stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for BHC is 8.25 USD with a low forecast of 7 USD and a high forecast of 10 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.

0 Buy

4 Hold

0 Sell

Hold

Current: 5.730

Low

Averages

8.25

High

Current: 5.730

Low

Averages

8.25

High

Truist

Hold

maintain

AI Analysis

2026-01-23

Reason

Truist

Price Target

AI Analysis

2026-01-23

maintain

Hold

Reason

Truist notes Bausch Health announced that Phase 3 results of the RED-C program did not meet the primary endpoint. Recall, the program included two global Phase 3 trials evaluating rifaximin solid-state dispersion for the delay of the first episode of hepatic encephalopathy in adults with liver cirrhosis with no prior hepatic encephalopathy episodes. The firm thinks the results could place more pressure on Bausch's options after Xifaxan loss of exclusivity by year-end 2027. The company could now be missing out on a potential rifaximin SSD total addressable market of nearly 3 times that of Xifaxan, and other paths to monetization are unclear. Truist would anticipate investor focus shifts to remaining pipeline opportunities. The firm has a Hold rating on Bausch with a price target of $8.

Truist

Les Sulewski

Hold

maintain

$7 -> $8

2026-01-07

Reason

Truist

Les Sulewski

Price Target

$7 -> $8

2026-01-07

maintain

Hold

Reason

Truist analyst Les Sulewski raised the firm's price target on Bausch Health to $8 from $7 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. The affordable medicines theme remains attractive heading into 2026, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

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BHC Should I Buy

BHC Should I Buy

Should You Buy Bausch Health Companies Inc (BHC) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Technical Analysis

Options Data

Technical Summary

Positive Catalysts

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

Financial Performance

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

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