Wesleyan Assurance Society Sells 9,811 Shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY)

Wesleyan Assurance Society decreased its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY - Free Report) by 14.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 59,492 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 9,811 shares during the quarter. Wesleyan Assurance Society's holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $3,367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Tacita Capital Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, M Holdings Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors own 76.41% of the company's stock.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:BMY opened at $47.22 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market cap of $96.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.39. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 52 week low of $39.35 and a 52 week high of $63.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $52.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.94.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $11.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.77 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a negative net margin of 18.53% and a positive return on equity of 13.93%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($4.40) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 6.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.25%. Bristol-Myers Squibb's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bristol-Myers Squibb

In other news, EVP Samit Hirawat acquired 4,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $47.58 per share, for a total transaction of $202,215.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 83,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,973,548.54. This represents a 5.36% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on BMY. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $55.00 price objective (down previously from $67.00) on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. William Blair reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Argus upgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bristol-Myers Squibb presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $58.00.

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.

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