Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE:BMY)

Current Ratio

The current ratio exhibits moderate fluctuations over the observed periods. It started at 1.56 in the first quarter of 2021 and generally trended downward, reaching a low of 1.11 in the first quarter of 2024. However, there was a partial recovery thereafter, with the ratio gradually increasing to 1.27 by the third quarter of 2025. This indicates a slight decline in short-term liquidity around early 2024, followed by stabilization and modest improvement.

Quick Ratio

The quick ratio also shows a downward trend initially, beginning at 1.25 in March 2021 and decreasing to 0.78 by the first and second quarters of 2024. The metric then shows some recovery, rising to 0.99 by the third quarter of 2025. This pattern suggests a reduction in the company's most liquid current assets relative to current liabilities through mid-2024, with subsequent improvement in quick asset coverage.

Cash Ratio

The cash ratio displays a more pronounced decline over the periods, starting at 0.75 in the first quarter of 2021 and dropping to a low of 0.29 in the second quarter of 2024. Following this low point, the ratio increases steadily to 0.59 by the third quarter of 2025. This trend suggests a significant reduction in cash and cash equivalents relative to current liabilities up to mid-2024, with a clear recovery phase thereafter.

Overall Liquidity Analysis

Collectively, liquidity ratios indicate a general weakening of short-term financial strength through early to mid-2024, with the most acute decline observed in cash reserves. The partial recoveries in all three ratios from mid-2024 to late 2025 imply corrective measures or improved operational cash flow, enhancing the firm's capacity to meet short-term obligations. Despite these recoveries, the liquidity ratios do not return to their initial higher levels, suggesting a more conservative liquidity position compared to the start of the analyzed period.

The analysis of the quarterly financial data reveals several notable trends in the company's liquidity position over the observed periods.

Current Assets

The current assets exhibit a generally fluctuating pattern but with an overall upward trajectory towards the end of the series. Initial quarters show moderate growth from approximately $27.1 billion to a peak of around $33.3 billion by December 2021, followed by some decline and volatility in 2022. From early 2023 onwards, the values tend to recover with a significant increase by the final quarter of 2025, reaching about $35.6 billion, indicating an expansion in liquid and short-term resources available.

Current Liabilities

Current liabilities also demonstrate volatility but display a general increasing trend. Starting at roughly $17.3 billion, the liabilities rise steadily with some oscillations, reaching about $21.9 billion at the end of 2021. After slight reductions and rebounds through 2022 and early 2023, the liabilities grow more substantially from mid-2023, culminating near $28.1 billion by Q3 2025. This rising trend suggests an increase in short-term obligations over time, which impacts liquidity considerations.

Current Ratio

The current ratio, a key liquidity indicator, starts at 1.56 and fluctuates within the range of about 1.1 to 1.56 throughout the period. Notably, there is a downward trend from 1.56 in early 2021 to a low near 1.11 during mid-2024, implying a temporary reduction in the company's ability to meet short-term liabilities with current assets. Post mid-2024, the current ratio slightly recovers, stabilizing around 1.2 to 1.3 by the end of 2025. Overall, the ratio remains above 1.0, indicating the company maintains a positive liquidity buffer, though the declining trend mid-period points to tightening liquidity conditions at times.

In summary, while current assets and liabilities both trend upward over time, liabilities increase at a relatively rapid pace, which lowers the current ratio periodically. The company maintains sufficient liquidity overall, but the fluctuations in the current ratio suggest periods when liquidity management may require attention to ensure continued ability to cover short-term obligations efficiently.

The financial analysis of the company's liquidity based on quarterly data reveals several notable trends over the examined periods. The focus is on total quick assets, current liabilities, and the quick ratio, which collectively provide insights into the company's short-term financial health and ability to meet immediate obligations.

Total Quick Assets

The total quick assets display fluctuations with an initial upward trend from approximately $21.6 billion in the first quarter of 2021, peaking near $26.3 billion at the end of 2021. Subsequently, there is a noticeable decline through 2022, reaching around $19.1 billion by the end of that year. In 2023, values show moderate variance but remain generally lower compared to the 2021 peak, ranging between $17.9 billion and $23.2 billion. Starting in 2024, quick assets exhibit a gradual increase again, rising from roughly $18.1 billion in the second quarter to approximately $27.9 billion by the third quarter of 2025, indicating strengthening liquid asset reserves in the latter periods.

Current Liabilities

Current liabilities show an overall rising trend across the timeline. Beginning at about $17.3 billion in early 2021, liabilities increase steadily with some short-term fluctuations, reaching over $28.1 billion by the third quarter of 2025. This gradual growth in liabilities suggests increased short-term obligations, which could impact liquidity management. The consistent rise in current liabilities juxtaposed against the varying quick assets highlights a dynamic liquidity environment requiring close monitoring.

Quick Ratio

The quick ratio, an indicator of the company's ability to cover short-term liabilities with liquid assets, starts relatively strong at 1.25 in the first quarter of 2021. It moderately declines to values below 1 for several quarters from mid-2022 through much of 2024, signaling potential liquidity pressure during those periods. Specifically, the ratio dips as low as 0.77 in the third quarter of 2023 and remains below 1 during several subsequent quarters. However, an upward correction is visible beginning late 2024, bringing the ratio closer to parity at 0.99 by the third quarter of 2025. The fluctuations in the quick ratio suggest varying degrees of liquidity risk, with periods where current liabilities outpace liquid assets, followed by a gradual return toward more favorable liquidity.

In summary, the company's short-term liquidity demonstrated a peak in liquid assets in late 2021, followed by a decline through 2023, alongside steadily increasing current liabilities. The resulting pressure on liquidity is reflected in quick ratio values below 1 in several periods. Recent trends from 2024 onward show improvement in quick assets and the quick ratio, suggesting efforts toward restoring liquidity balance. Ongoing attention to the interplay between asset liquidity and short-term obligations will be essential to maintain financial stability.

The analysis of the quarterly financial data reveals notable trends in the liquidity position of the company over the observed periods. The primary focus is on total cash assets, current liabilities, and the cash ratio, which collectively indicate the company’s short-term financial health.

Total Cash Assets

Total cash assets exhibited fluctuations across the quarters. Initially, there was a general upward trend, rising from 12,930 million USD at the beginning of 2021 to a peak of 16,966 million USD by the end of that year. Following this peak, a significant decline occurred through 2022, reaching a low point around mid-2024 at approximately 6,653 million USD. Thereafter, a recovery trend is observed with cash assets increasing again, reaching a higher value of 16,502 million USD by the first quarter of 2025.

Current Liabilities

Current liabilities maintained a generally increasing trajectory throughout the entire period. Starting at 17,330 million USD in early 2021, liabilities grew steadily with minor fluctuations, reaching 28,136 million USD by early 2025. There are occasional periods where liabilities plateau or slightly decrease, but the overall trend is upward, indicating a growing short-term obligation level.

Cash Ratio

The cash ratio, representing the ability to cover current liabilities with available cash, shows a declining trend from 0.75 in early 2021 to a low of 0.29 in mid-2024. This decline reflects a reduction in liquidity relative to obligations. Following the trough, the ratio improves towards the end of the observed period, reaching 0.59 by early 2025. Despite this improvement, the ratio remains below the levels observed at the start of the dataset, suggesting that liquidity coverage has weakened over the multi-year span.

Overall, the data indicates that while the company experienced growth in total cash assets and increasing current liabilities, the liquidity buffer measured by the cash ratio diminished substantially in the middle of the period before showing signs of recovery. The rising current liabilities outpaced cash assets for much of the timeframe, which likely contributed to the depressed liquidity ratios observed in the latter part of the data. The recent trends toward increased cash assets and improved cash ratio could suggest enhanced liquidity management or operational cash flow improvements going forward.