Short Interest in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) Decreases By 18.2%

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 43,760,000 shares, a decrease of 18.2% from the August 15th total of 53,510,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 9,890,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.4 days. Currently, 2.1% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMY opened at $58.58 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.28. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 1 year low of $58.33 and a 1 year high of $81.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $61.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.11.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.24). Bristol-Myers Squibb had a net margin of 17.62% and a return on equity of 50.51%. The company had revenue of $11.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.93 earnings per share. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 7.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Robert M. Plenge sold 732 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.14, for a total transaction of $44,754.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,584 shares in the company, valued at approximately $402,545.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Bristol-Myers Squibb news, EVP Robert M. Plenge sold 732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.14, for a total value of $44,754.48. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,584 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $402,545.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann Powell sold 17,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.25, for a total transaction of $1,101,642.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,706,915. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bristol-Myers Squibb

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 1st quarter worth approximately $332,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 111.5% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,052 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 53.2% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 165,336 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $12,075,000 after acquiring an additional 57,444 shares during the period. Ergoteles LLC purchased a new stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb during the first quarter worth about $1,997,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 25.1% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 338,563 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $24,725,000 after purchasing an additional 68,018 shares during the period. 74.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 1st. Atlantic Securities reduced their price objective on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 28th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $80.00 to $66.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Daiwa Capital Markets started coverage on Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Wednesday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Finally, SVB Securities started coverage on Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Monday, July 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $66.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.67.

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, an oral inhibitor for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in NVAF, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for anti-cancer indications; Pomalyst/Imnovid indicated for patients with multiple myeloma; Orencia for adult patients with active RA and psoriatic arthritis; and Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia.