Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 25,770,000 shares, an increase of 10.0% from the October 31st total of 23,420,000 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 11,080,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMY has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Barclays upped their target price on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.07.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Price Performance

NYSE:BMY traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $58.35. 5,115,634 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,173,604. The firm has a market cap of $118.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.28, a P/E/G ratio of 16.08 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $54.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.49. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 52 week low of $39.35 and a 52 week high of $61.08.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $11.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s dividend payout ratio is presently -66.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In other Bristol-Myers Squibb news, SVP Phil M. Holzer sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $654,091.20. This trade represents a 5.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Samit Hirawat bought 1,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $54.67 per share, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 3.04 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Meridian Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 28,283 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted 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 purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 39.8% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 664 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.3% in the third quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,466 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $438,000 after buying an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC raised its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 5,595 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.41% of the company’s stock.

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.