Stock Update (NYSE:BMY): U.S. regulator says too many drugmakers chasing same cancer strategy

[Reuters] – A new type of cancer drug that takes the brakes off the body’s immune system has given drugmakers some remarkable wins against the deadly disease, but a top U.S. regulator says too many companies are focused on the same approach. Dr. Richard Pazdur, head of the Food and Drug Administration’s office of oncology products, was referring to therapies designed to disable the PD-1 protein that tumors use to evade the immune system. The FDA has approved such treatments from Merck & Co , Bristol-Myers Squibb Co and Roche Holding AG , each of which have list prices of $150,000 per year. Read more on this. Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMY) , with a current market cap of $122.03B, started trading this morning at $72.22. Today’s price range has been between $72.16 and $73.15 per share and has traded between $51.82 and $75.12 over the past 12 months. Priced at 28.10x this year’s forecasted earnings, BMY shares are relatively expensive compared to the industry’s -0.02x forward p/e ratio. And for dividend hunters, the company pays shareholders $1.52 per share annually in dividends, yielding 2.09%. In a review of the consensus earnings estimate this quarter, 19 sell-side analysts are looking at $0.66 per share, which would be $0.13 better than the year-ago quarter and a $0.04 sequential increase. Furthermore, our analysis shows the full-year EPS estimate to be $2.57, which would be a $0.56 improvement when compared to the last year’s annual results. The quarterly earnings estimate is based on a consensus revenue forecast of the current quarter of $4.60 Billion. If realized, that would be a 10.58% increase over the year-ago quarter. Recently, Hilliard Lyons Initiated BMY at Neutral (May 23, 2016). Previously, Societe Generale Initiated BMY at to Sell. Investors should keep in mind is that the average price target is $76.29, which is 5.64% above where the stock opened this morning. See more in (NYSE:BMY) Similar Articles: Market Update: Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) – U.S. regulator says too many drugmakers chasing same cancer strategy Market Update (NYSE:BMY): Bristol-Myers Squibb Receives Two Positive CHMP Opinions for Opdivo® (nivolumab) for Patients with Previously Treated Advanced Non-Squamous Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer and Renal Cell Carcinoma Market Update (NYSE:BMY): Bristol-Myers Squibb and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Enter Into a Collaboration Agreement as Part of U.S. Immuno-Oncology Rare Population Malignancy Research Program