Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Stock Price Up 1.5% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) shot up 1.5% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $26.99 and last traded at $26.98. 10,144,238 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 24,757,395 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.59.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on PFE shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI raised Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.00.

Pfizer Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $26.27 and a 200-day moving average of $28.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market cap of $152.56 billion, a PE ratio of 36.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.64.

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

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.39%. This is a positive change from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 232.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Scott Gottlieb bought 1,000 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.24 per share, with a total value of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $282,400. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Private Trust Co. raised its holdings in Pfizer by 29.0% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 13,766 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 3,093 shares in the last quarter. InvesTrust acquired a new position in Pfizer during the fourth quarter worth about $5,246,000. Sterneck Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Pfizer by 76.2% in the 4th quarter. Sterneck Capital Management LLC now owns 32,630 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $866,000 after acquiring an additional 14,107 shares during the last quarter. Range Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the fourth quarter valued at $353,000. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC grew its position in shares of Pfizer by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 18,811 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

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.