Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) Shares Sold by Hedges Asset Management LLC

Hedges Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 36,600 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Bristol-Myers Squibb comprises about 1.4% of Hedges Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Hedges Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $2,070,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of BMY. Meridian Management Co. lifted its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 28,283 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 61.3% in the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 492 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 39.8% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 664 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,466 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lakewood Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 26,867 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bristol-Myers Squibb news, EVP Samit Hirawat bought 1,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Phil M. Holzer sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.62, for a total value of $38,934.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $654,091.20. This represents a 5.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of NYSE BMY opened at $59.15 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $57.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.36. The company has a market cap of $119.97 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.45. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 12-month low of $39.35 and a 12-month high of $61.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83.

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

Bristol-Myers Squibb Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. This is a positive change from Bristol-Myers Squibb’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -69.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BMY. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.27.

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.