Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Stock Price Up 1.8% – Here’s Why

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)’s share price was up 1.8% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $26.45 and last traded at $26.11. Approximately 12,197,163 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 38,374,086 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PFE. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com lowered Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised Pfizer from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $28.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Daiwa America upgraded Pfizer from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Pfizer in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.92.

Pfizer Stock Performance

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 firm has a market cap of $148.31 billion, a PE ratio of 35.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.67. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $28.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.57.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.92 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.17) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is presently 227.03%.

Insider Activity

In other Pfizer 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, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Pfizer by 1.3% during the second quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 26,306 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $736,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 5,010 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 14,361 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $416,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Pfizer by 0.6% during the second quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 58,328 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,632,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. grew its stake in Pfizer by 0.8% in the second quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 42,162 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,180,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

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.