Bristol-Myers Squibb Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BMY)

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 296,826 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 866% compared to the typical daily volume of 30,739 call options.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Up 0.4 %

Bristol-Myers Squibb stock traded up $0.22 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $56.78. 6,004,516 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,999,770. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $115.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 15.20 and a beta of 0.45. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 52-week low of $39.35 and a 52-week high of $61.08. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $56.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.75.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.31. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a positive return on equity of 11.94% and a negative net margin of 15.30%. The company had revenue of $11.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.26 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. This is an increase from Bristol-Myers Squibb’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.37%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s dividend payout ratio is currently -69.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Daiwa America upgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Barclays increased their price target on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bristol-Myers Squibb currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.64.

Insider Activity at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In other Bristol-Myers Squibb news, SVP Phil M. Holzer sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.62, for a total transaction 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 $654,091.20. This represents a 5.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Samit Hirawat acquired 1,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $54.67 per share, with a total value of $100,046.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 62,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,395,499.03. This trade represents a 3.04 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bristol-Myers Squibb

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BMY. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 1.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,896,580 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,806,469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451,214 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 61,030,403 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,157,713,000 after acquiring an additional 1,968,729 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 10.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 44,940,609 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,325,227,000 after acquiring an additional 4,275,787 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 43,204,016 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,228,425,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036,495 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA grew its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 1.0% in the second quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 23,498,604 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $975,897,000 after purchasing an additional 225,197 shares in the last quarter. 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.