Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Shares Up 0.3% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) shot up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $26.52 and last traded at $26.39. 13,707,547 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 64% from the average session volume of 37,743,406 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. UBS Group decreased their price objective 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. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.92.

Pfizer Trading Up 1.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $151.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $26.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.40. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 19.47%. The company had revenue of $17.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued 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 6.46%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 121.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock acquired 19,457 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.65 per share, for a total transaction of $499,072.05. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 27,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $710,684.55. The trade was a 235.84 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Pfizer

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth $484,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Pfizer during the 4th quarter worth $230,000. Challenger Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth about $210,000. Ascent Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 69,637 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,847,000 after acquiring an additional 6,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gould Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 97.2% during the 4th quarter. Gould Capital LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is owned by 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.