Sherman Asset Management Inc. Invests $129,000 in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Sherman Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 4,852 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $129,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Pfizer by 102.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38,015 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in Pfizer in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock purchased 19,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $25.65 per share, with a total value of $499,072.05. Following the purchase, the director now owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at $710,684.55. This represents a 235.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Pfizer Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Pfizer stock opened at $26.43 on Friday. Pfizer Inc. has a one year low of $24.48 and a one year high of $31.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $26.35 and its 200 day moving average is $27.33. The firm has a market cap of $149.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 12.62%. The business had revenue of $17.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is 121.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com lowered Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Pfizer currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.92.

Pfizer 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.