Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Shares Down 0.2% – Here’s What Happened

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)’s share price dropped 0.2% on Friday . The company traded as low as $26.52 and last traded at $26.57. Approximately 5,717,203 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 18,795,836 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.61.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PFE. Evercore ISI raised Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.15.

Pfizer Trading Down 0.1 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $150.69 billion, a PE ratio of 35.93, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $17.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.17) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is a positive change from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 232.43%.

Insider Transactions at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was purchased 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 directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

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