Pfizer Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PFE)

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock traders purchased 294,496 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 68% compared to the average volume of 175,651 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock bought 19,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.65 per share, with a total value of $499,072.05. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $710,684.55. This trade represents a 235.84 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pfizer

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Pfizer by 2.5% during the third quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 14,361 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 49,216 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,424,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. PSI Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 27,823 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $738,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the period. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 4,073 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 386 shares during the period. Finally, Waddell & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 24,978 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pfizer Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFE traded up $0.45 on Friday, hitting $26.35. The company had a trading volume of 39,142,909 shares, compared to its average volume of 38,022,176. 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 has a 52-week low of $24.48 and a 52-week high of $31.54. The business has a 50 day moving average of $26.28 and a 200 day moving average of $27.44. The company has a market cap of $149.34 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Pfizer will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.53%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is 121.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PFE. Evercore ISI raised Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.92.

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.