Wedbush Securities Inc. Raises Holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY)

Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,386 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,618 shares during the quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $3,246,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 189,944,516 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,743,262,000 after purchasing an additional 1,373,209 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 44,391,247 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,505,967,000 after buying an additional 1,187,231 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter worth about $1,989,525,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 24,733,868 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,398,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,482,410 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 49.7% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 11,413,428 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $639,837,000 after purchasing an additional 3,787,075 shares in the last quarter. 76.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Down 4.3 %

Shares of BMY opened at $55.32 on Friday. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 52-week low of $39.35 and a 52-week high of $63.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $58.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.58. The company has a market capitalization of $112.56 billion, a PE ratio of -12.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 6.74 EPS for the current year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s payout ratio is -56.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $63.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bristol-Myers Squibb presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.86.

Insider Activity at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In related news, EVP Samit Hirawat purchased 1,823 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $54.84 per share, for a total transaction of $99,973.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,506,030.88. The trade was a 2.94 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.