Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Trading 0.4% Higher – Time to Buy?

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)’s share price shot up 0.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $26.09 and last traded at $25.99. 10,202,379 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 38,546,367 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on PFE shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup initiated coverage on Pfizer in a report on Friday, October 25th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.14.

Pfizer Stock Down 0.7 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $26.95 and a 200-day moving average of $28.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $145.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.65.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. Pfizer’s revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.17) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 232.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $282,400. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Pfizer

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Swiss National Bank grew its position in Pfizer by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 16,819,712 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $486,762,000 after acquiring an additional 100,900 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 11.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 130,143,942 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,766,366,000 after purchasing an additional 12,864,343 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Pfizer by 80.9% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 508,256 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $14,709,000 after acquiring an additional 227,349 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Pfizer by 394.2% during the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 52,238 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,512,000 after acquiring an additional 41,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in Pfizer by 26.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,105,433 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $89,872,000 after purchasing an additional 639,985 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

About Pfizer

Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular metabolic, migraine, and women's health under the Eliquis, Nurtec ODT/Vydura, Zavzpret, and the Premarin family brands; infectious diseases with unmet medical needs under the Prevnar family, Abrysvo, Nimenrix, FSME/IMMUN-TicoVac, and Trumenba brands; and COVID-19 prevention and treatment, and potential future mRNA and antiviral products under the Comirnaty and Paxlovid brands.