Will Bristol-Myers (BMY) Beat Q1 Earnings? - Analyst Blog

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company BMY is scheduled to release its first quarter 2014 results before the opening bell on Tuesday, Apr 29. Last quarter, Bristol-Myers had posted a positive earnings surprise of 18.60%. Let's see how things are shaping up for this announcement.

Factors at Play

Bristol-Myers has delivered positive earnings surprises in two of the last four quarters with an average beat of 11.58%. Drugs like Baraclude (hepatitis B virus), Sustiva (HIV), Sprycel (leukemia), Yervoy (skin cancer) and Erbitux (oncology), which performed encouragingly last quarter are expected to perform well in the first quarter as well. Moreover, the newly launched products, especially in the oncology field, are expected to play a key role in boosting the company's bottom line this quarter. We note that Bristol-Myers has been trying to offset declining sales of some of its important products by bringing in new products through in-licensing deals.

Earnings Whispers?

Our proven model however does not conclusively show that Bristol-Myers is likely to beat earnings this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) and a Zacks Rank of #1, 2 or 3 for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.

Zacks ESP: The Earnings ESP for Bristol-Myers is 0.00% since the Most Accurate Estimate stands at 44 cents, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

Zacks Rank #3 (Hold): Bristol-Myers' Zacks Rank #3 when combined with a 0.00% ESP makes surprise prediction difficult.

Other Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies you may want to consider as our model shows that they have the right combination of elements, i.e., a positive Zacks Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1, #2 or #3:

Hospira Inc. HSP has an Earnings ESP of +4.08% and holds a Zacks Rank #3. Hospira will be reporting first quarter earnings before the opening bell on Apr 30.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited TEVA has an Earnings ESP of +0.82% and holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Teva will be reporting first quarter earnings on May 1 before market opens.

Actavis ACT has an Earnings ESP of +3.34% and holds a Zacks Rank #2. Actavis will be reporting first quarter earnings on Apr 30 before market opens.