Bristol-Myers Squibb Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:BMY)

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

Bristol-Myers Squibb Price Performance

Shares of BMY stock opened at $56.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.79. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a one year low of $39.35 and a one year high of $61.08. The firm has a market cap of $114.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.76, a P/E/G ratio of 15.20 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Bristol-Myers Squibb Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.62 dividend. This is an increase from Bristol-Myers Squibb’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s payout ratio is presently -69.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on BMY shares. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.64.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Samit Hirawat purchased 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $54.67 per share, for a total transaction of $100,046.10. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 62,109 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,499.03. The trade was a 3.04 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Phil M. Holzer sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were 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 $654,091.20. The trade was a 5.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bristol-Myers Squibb

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BMY. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. increased its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 39.0% in the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 103,500 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,355,000 after buying an additional 29,044 shares in the last quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC increased its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 5,595 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 34.3% in the third quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 44,546 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,305,000 after acquiring an additional 11,387 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 81.3% during the third quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 76,775 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,972,000 after purchasing an additional 34,418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bellevue Group AG acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,905,000. 76.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.