Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Trading Down 3.8% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) were down 3.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $24.48 and last traded at $25.04. Approximately 58,602,102 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 55% from the average daily volume of 37,886,434 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PFE has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Daiwa America raised Pfizer from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI raised Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Pfizer from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Pfizer in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.92.

Pfizer Stock Down 4.7 %

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.54 billion, a PE ratio of 33.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.67. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The firm had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.17) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 227.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.24 per share, with a total value of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $282,400. This represents a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pfizer

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 394.2% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 52,238 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,512,000 after purchasing an additional 41,668 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Pfizer by 80.9% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 508,256 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $14,709,000 after acquiring an additional 227,349 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 26.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,105,433 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $89,872,000 after acquiring an additional 639,985 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Pfizer by 4.3% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 13,118,764 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $379,657,000 after acquiring an additional 544,418 shares during the period. Finally, LGT Group Foundation raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 2.5% during the second quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 742,875 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $20,786,000 after purchasing an additional 18,274 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

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.