Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Stock Price Up 0.4% – Here’s Why

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) traded up 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $26.20 and last traded at $26.11. 8,208,513 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 33,243,023 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price target on Pfizer from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.00.

Pfizer Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.08 and a 200 day moving average of $27.95. The firm has a market cap of $147.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.10, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The business had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.17) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.94 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. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This is a positive change from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 227.03%.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.24 per share, with a total value of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $282,400. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pfizer

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFE. 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 valued at $3,766,366,000 after purchasing an additional 12,864,343 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 22.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 38,068,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,101,713,000 after purchasing an additional 6,977,587 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Pfizer in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $146,481,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its holdings in Pfizer by 164.2% in the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 7,316,405 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $211,737,000 after buying an additional 4,546,809 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Pfizer by 226.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,209,907 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $179,715,000 after buying an additional 4,309,076 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Pfizer Company Profile

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.