Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Trading Down 0.5% – What’s Next?

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) shares were down 0.5% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $26.61 and last traded at $26.66. Approximately 4,153,788 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 30,662,762 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.80.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PFE shares. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Pfizer from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com cut Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. UBS Group lowered 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, January 8th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.00.

Pfizer Price Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $26.11 and a 200 day moving average of $28.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The company had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.17) earnings per share. Pfizer’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 227.03%.

Insider Transactions at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $28.24 per share, with a total value of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $282,400. This represents a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pfizer

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 11.0% in 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. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Pfizer by 279.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 5,378,173 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $150,481,000 after buying an additional 8,378,173 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Pfizer by 22.4% in the 3rd 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 worth $1,101,713,000 after buying an additional 6,977,587 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Pfizer in the third quarter valued at approximately $146,481,000. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its holdings in Pfizer by 164.2% during the third 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 acquiring an additional 4,546,809 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.