Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) Downgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Thursday.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on BMY. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $51.00 to $43.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. William Blair restated a market perform rating on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Societe Generale lowered Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bristol-Myers Squibb presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $60.00.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Price Performance

Shares of BMY opened at $41.53 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.99, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 1-year low of $39.63 and a 1-year high of $65.38. The stock has a market cap of $84.19 billion, a PE ratio of -13.40, a P/E/G ratio of 14.21 and a beta of 0.43.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($4.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($4.53) by $0.13. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a positive return on equity of 8.83% and a negative net margin of 13.50%. The company had revenue of $11.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 0.58 EPS for the current year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.78%. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s payout ratio is -77.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bristol-Myers Squibb

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the first quarter worth $27,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc purchased a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.41% of the company’s stock.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Profile

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.