ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Trims Holdings in Bristol Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY)

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in Bristol Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) by 3.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,720 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 581 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Bristol Myers Squibb were worth $1,081,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol Myers Squibb in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Bristol Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bristol Myers Squibb during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Bristol Myers Squibb during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its position in Bristol Myers Squibb by 137.5% during the first quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 475 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Samit Hirawat purchased 4,250 shares of Bristol Myers Squibb stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $47.58 per share, for a total transaction of $202,215.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 83,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,973,548.54. The trade was a 5.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on BMY shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Bristol Myers Squibb from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective (down previously from $67.00) on shares of Bristol Myers Squibb in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Bristol Myers Squibb from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price target on Bristol Myers Squibb from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Bristol Myers Squibb in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.00.

Bristol Myers Squibb Price Performance

Bristol Myers Squibb stock opened at $47.64 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.84, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.36. Bristol Myers Squibb Company has a 52-week low of $39.35 and a 52-week high of $63.33.

Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $11.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.77 billion. Bristol Myers Squibb had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 87.62%. Bristol Myers Squibb’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($4.40) EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Bristol Myers Squibb Company will post 6.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bristol Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. Bristol Myers Squibb’s payout ratio is currently 92.88%.

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.