By ,
Published January 13, 2015
Bausch & Lomb Inc.'s (BOL) move to halt shipping a type of contact lens solution in the United States after some users were diagnosed with serious eye infections could have broad implications for the company, analysts said on Tuesday.
The company is halting shipments of one specific brand — its ReNu MoistureLoc contact lens solution — but Bausch's other product lines could be hurt, analysts said.
"While Bausch & Lomb is only at this time suspending U.S. MoistureLoc sales..., the spillover effect to the broader ReNu brand could be significant," J.P. Morgan analyst Michael Weinstein said in a research note.
Weinstein was one of several analysts to downgrade their ratings on Bausch shares Tuesday.
Banc of America Securities analyst David Maris said in a research note that in addition to the lost sales from the MoistureLoc product, "we are not sure why this will not spill into other geographies and whether retailers will simply cut back on all Bausch facings.
"The collateral damage could be sizable," said Maris, who maintained his "sell" rating on the stock.
Moreover, the move could hurt the company's brand name beyond lens solutions but in the contact lenses themselves, he said.
https://www.foxnews.com/story/renu-contact-solution-shipments-stopped