Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Shares Sold by HM Payson & Co.

HM Payson & Co. decreased its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 3.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 634,130 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 24,780 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $18,352,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Pfizer by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 63,545 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,763,000 after buying an additional 10,314 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its stake in Pfizer by 45.0% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 51,735 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,436,000 after buying an additional 16,060 shares in the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management purchased a new position in Pfizer in the 1st quarter valued at about $205,000. American National Bank & Trust Co. VA purchased a new position in Pfizer in the 1st quarter valued at about $285,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Pfizer in the 1st quarter valued at about $315,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE PFE traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $28.42. 2,164,317 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 37,048,828. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $161.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.54, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.86. Pfizer Inc. has a twelve month low of $25.20 and a twelve month high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a negative net margin of 4.66% and a positive return on equity of 8.42%. The firm had revenue of $17.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.17) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.91%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 227.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $28.00 to $34.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.58.

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.