Biopharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) announced better-than-expected revenue in Q1 CY2026, with sales up 2.6% year on year to $11.49 billion. On the other hand, the company’s full-year revenue guidance of $46.75 billion at the midpoint came in 0.8% below analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $1.58 per share was 11.1% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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Company Overview

With roots dating back to 1887 and a transformative merger in 1989 that gave the company its current name, Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) discovers, develops, and markets prescription medications for serious diseases including cancer, blood disorders, immunological conditions, and cardiovascular diseases.

Revenue Growth

A company’s long-term sales performance is one signal of its overall quality. Any business can have short-term success, but a top-tier one grows for years. Over the last five years, Bristol-Myers Squibb grew its sales at a tepid 2.6% compounded annual growth rate. This was below our standards and is a poor baseline for our analysis.

Long-term growth is the most important, but within healthcare, a half-decade historical view may miss new innovations or demand cycles. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s annualized revenue growth of 3.2% over the last two years aligns with its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was consistently weak.

Bristol-Myers Squibb also breaks out the revenue for its most important segment, Growth Portfolio. Over the last two years, Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Growth Portfolio revenue averaged 16% year-on-year growth. This segment has outperformed its total sales during the same period, lifting the company’s performance.

This quarter, Bristol-Myers Squibb reported modest year-on-year revenue growth of 2.6% but beat Wall Street’s estimates by 7.4%.

Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to decline by 5.1% over the next 12 months, a deceleration versus the last two years. This projection is underwhelming and suggests its products and services will see some demand headwinds.

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Adjusted Operating Margin

Adjusted operating margin is a key measure of profitability. Think of it as net income (the bottom line) excluding the impact of non-recurring expenses, taxes, and interest on debt - metrics less connected to business fundamentals.

Bristol-Myers Squibb has been a well-oiled machine over the last five years. It demonstrated elite profitability for a healthcare business, boasting an average adjusted operating margin of 30.9%.

Looking at the trend in its profitability, Bristol-Myers Squibb’s adjusted operating margin decreased by 12.3 percentage points over the last five years, but it rose by 20.2 percentage points on a two-year basis. Still, shareholders will want to see Bristol-Myers Squibb become more profitable in the future.

This quarter, Bristol-Myers Squibb generated an adjusted operating margin profit margin of 28.2%, down 9.1 percentage points year on year. This contraction shows it was less efficient because its expenses grew faster than its revenue.

Earnings Per Share

Revenue trends explain a company’s historical growth, but the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) points to the profitability of that growth – for example, a company could inflate its sales through excessive spending on advertising and promotions.

Sadly for Bristol-Myers Squibb, its EPS declined by 1.7% annually over the last five years while its revenue grew by 2.6%. This tells us the company became less profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded due to non-fundamental factors such as interest expenses and taxes.

We can take a deeper look into Bristol-Myers Squibb’s earnings to better understand the drivers of its performance. As we mentioned earlier, Bristol-Myers Squibb’s adjusted operating margin declined by 12.3 percentage points over the last five years. This was the most relevant factor (aside from the revenue impact) behind its lower earnings; interest expenses and taxes can also affect EPS but don’t tell us as much about a company’s fundamentals.

In Q1, Bristol-Myers Squibb reported adjusted EPS of $1.58, down from $1.80 in the same quarter last year. Despite falling year on year, this print easily cleared analysts’ estimates. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects Bristol-Myers Squibb’s full-year EPS of $5.93 to grow 4.8%.

Key Takeaways from Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Q1 Results

We were impressed by how significantly Bristol-Myers Squibb blew past analysts’ revenue expectations this quarter. We were also glad its EPS outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. On the other hand, its full-year EPS guidance slightly missed and its full-year revenue guidance fell slightly short of Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, this print was mixed but still had some key positives. The stock remained flat at $57.96 immediately following the results.

Is Bristol-Myers Squibb an attractive investment opportunity at the current price? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).