Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Stock Price Down 1.3% – Here’s Why

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) dropped 1.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $26.07 and last traded at $26.11. Approximately 7,938,757 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 37,253,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PFE has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Pfizer from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.92.

Pfizer Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $26.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.20 billion, a PE ratio of 35.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a net margin of 7.07% and a return on equity of 16.28%. The firm 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 firm earned $0.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current 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 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is presently 232.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of PFE. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 155,459,101 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,124,330,000 after purchasing an additional 25,315,159 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 22.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 38,068,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,101,713,000 after purchasing an additional 6,977,587 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $146,481,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 79.5% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,148,116 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $295,760,000 after purchasing an additional 4,938,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 21,286,805 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $564,739,000 after purchasing an additional 4,726,549 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pfizer Company 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.