A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Baxter International Inc. BAX. Shares have added about 6.7% in that time frame, outperforming the market.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to the stock's next earnings release, or is it due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.

Baxter International Q1 Earnings Beat, FY17 View Up

Baxter International reported first-quarter 2017 adjusted earnings of $0.58 per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by $0.07 and was way better than the year-ago figure of $0.36.

The figure was also above the company’s guidance of $0.50 to $0.52. Interestingly, over the last four trailing quarters, the company posted positive earnings surprises, the average being 19.75%.

The company posted sales of $2.47 billion, marginally beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.43 billion. At constant currency (cc), revenues increased 5% on a year-over-year basis.

Adjusting for the impact of foreign exchange and increased competition for the company’s cyclophosphamide, Baxter’s sales were up 7% on a year-over-year basis. U.S. sales were up 1% year over year to $1.1 billion. International sales increased 1% to almost $1.4 billion.

In the first quarter, Baxter acquired Wound Care Technologies, which is complementary to the company’s surgical portfolio. The company also entered into a strategic partnership with Scinopharm, one of the world’s leading active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturers.

Segment Details

Hospital products: Sales at this segment climbed 7% at cc on a year-over-year basis to $1.6 billion. Solid U.S. sales of IV therapies, IV access sets, and select anesthesia and critical care products were the key catalysts. Growing adoption of Baxter’s ‘parenteral nutrition therapies’ and international bio-surgery products also drove sales at this segment.

Renal products: Sales increased 1% at cc to $$896 million at this segment. Renal sales were driven by peritoneal dialysis products and increased global demand for continuous renal replacement therapies. Also, solid demand for the company’s Automated Peritoneal Dialysis (APD) cyclers – AMIA in the U.S. and HOMECHOICE CLARIA in international markets – boosted sales.

Guidance

For full-year 2017, Baxter projects earnings in the band of $2.20 to $2.28 per share, up from the previously issued range of $2.10 to $2.18 (from continuing operations, before special items). Furthermore, the company expects sales growth in the band of 2% to 3% at cc.