Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $61.10 and last traded at $60.28, with a volume of 1005624 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $59.67.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on BMY. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Bristol-Myers Squibb in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Daiwa America raised shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.27.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.71.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.31. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a negative net margin of 15.30% and a positive return on equity of 11.94%. The business had revenue of $11.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.00 EPS. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 0.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. This is an increase from Bristol-Myers Squibb’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s payout ratio is currently -69.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Samit Hirawat bought 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $54.67 per share, with a total value of $100,046.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 62,109 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,499.03. The trade was a 3.04 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Phil M. Holzer sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.62, for a total transaction of $38,934.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,760 shares in the company, valued at $654,091.20. This trade represents a 5.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bristol-Myers Squibb

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMY. Trust Point Inc. boosted its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 9,423 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $533,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,538 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $426,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Meridian Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 28,283 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,878 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $502,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Finally, Hollencrest Capital Management grew its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 61.3% during the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 492 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. 76.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Bristol-Myers Squibb

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company discovers, develops, licenses, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers products for hematology, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology, fibrotic, and neuroscience diseases. The company's products include Eliquis for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in non-valvular atrial fibrillation, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for various anti-cancer indications, including bladder, blood, CRC, head and neck, RCC, HCC, lung, melanoma, MPM, stomach and esophageal cancer; Pomalyst/Imnovid for multiple myeloma; Orencia for active rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis; and Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia.