Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Shares Down 0.9% on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) dropped 0.9% on Wednesday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $31.00 to $29.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Pfizer traded as low as $26.23 and last traded at $26.88. Approximately 9,896,990 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 30,847,986 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.13.

Several other analysts also recently commented on PFE. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Pfizer in a report on Friday, October 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Pfizer has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pfizer news, Director Scott Gottlieb purchased 1,000 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $282,400. This represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Pfizer by 102.8% during the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 38,015 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new position in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new position in Pfizer during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Joseph Group Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 168.3% in the 3rd quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 1,229 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Trading Down 0.9 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $152.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $26.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.07.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $17.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.92 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.17) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is a positive change from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 232.43%.

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.