Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) to Issue $0.62 Quarterly Dividend

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, March 3rd, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of 0.62 per share by the biopharmaceutical company on Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th.

Bristol-Myers Squibb has increased its dividend by an average of 6.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 16 years. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a payout ratio of 40.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Bristol-Myers Squibb to earn $6.09 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 40.7%.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of BMY opened at $59.52 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $120.77 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.46, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a one year low of $39.35 and a one year high of $61.10. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.93.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.20. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a negative net margin of 18.53% and a positive return on equity of 13.93%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 6.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bristol-Myers Squibb currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.86.

Insider Activity at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In other news, EVP Samit Hirawat purchased 1,823 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $54.84 per share, for a total transaction of $99,973.32. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 63,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,506,030.88. The trade was a 2.94 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bristol-Myers Squibb

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) by 33.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,728 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 4,935 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $1,116,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 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.