Sentry Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) by 14.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,341 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,613 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $388,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC grew its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 5,235 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 995 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,514 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,848,000 after buying an additional 5,315 shares during the last quarter. Apexium Financial LP raised its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 60.6% in the fourth quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 12,838 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 4,842 shares in the last quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC bought a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter valued at $3,910,000. Finally, Haverford Trust Co grew its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 78,241 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,015,000 after acquiring an additional 1,518 shares in the last quarter. 76.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Bristol-Myers Squibb from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $53.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bristol-Myers Squibb has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.67.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Price Performance

NYSE BMY opened at $48.59 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.50 billion, a PE ratio of -15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 12.62 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 12 month low of $39.35 and a 12 month high of $61.01. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.53.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.43. The business had revenue of $12.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.54 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a positive return on equity of 12.51% and a negative net margin of 14.06%. The company’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 0.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.94%. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s payout ratio is currently -77.42%.

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.