Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE – Get Free Report)’s share price dropped 0.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $27.07 and last traded at $27.21. Approximately 6,980,756 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 40,797,551 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.42.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research analysts have weighed in on PFE shares. Argus cut Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Pfizer from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.86.
Pfizer Stock Up 1.4 %
The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $27.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $157.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -458.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.
Pfizer (NYSE:PFE – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.26. Pfizer had a positive return on equity of 8.64% and a negative net margin of 0.56%. The firm had revenue of $14.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.87 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.
Pfizer Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.04%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 26th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently -2,799.53%.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pfizer
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFE. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Pfizer by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 239,209,768 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,886,849,000 after purchasing an additional 11,099,024 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Pfizer by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 104,246,432 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,985,783,000 after purchasing an additional 8,473,686 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Pfizer by 0.4% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 84,927,802 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,817,055,000 after purchasing an additional 348,628 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,129,927,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Pfizer by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 68,506,441 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,972,300,000 after purchasing an additional 8,298,920 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
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.