Bristol-Myers Squibb Is Easily Outpacing Its Peers

Investors have been piling into Bristol-Myers Squibb, with the stock rising 23.8% over the past three months. It also gained 2.4% on Thursday after the Celgene unit it acquired last year backed out of a $55 million settlement because not enough defendants were willing to sign the class-action suit. That marks a new 52-week high for the stock.

There’s also been upgrades of the stock from analysts as they feel that the cash generation of the combination of Bristol-Myers Squibb and Celgene is outstanding. They also like the mature pipeline of drugs held by the company.

Shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb have gained 38.3% over the past 52 weeks, outpacing the 26.6% gain for the S&P 500 over the same timeframe, and easily outpacing its benchmark S&P 500 Pharmaceuticals, which is up just 12.6% over the past 52-weeks.

One thing definitely in the favor of Bristol-Myers Squibb is the apparent successor to the blockbuster anticoagulant drug Eliquis. That drug brings in $17 billion a year for Bristol-Myers Squibb, but will go off patent in 2024.

Fortunately for Bristol-Myers Squibb they have a new drug, currently called BMS-986177, which is a new generation anticoagulant which is due for approval in 2024. It is felt that this drug could replace Eliquis just as the drug loses its exclusivity and biosimilar drugs begin to appear on the market.

On top of all that, analysts expect the company to grow by 29.4% this year, absolutely crushing the pharmaceutical industry average growth rate, which is a much more modest 6.4%. That alone recommends Bristol-Myers Squibb as a buy.