Pfizer Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:PFE)

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors acquired 200,046 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 76% compared to the typical volume of 113,959 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PFE shares. Guggenheim lowered their target price on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Pfizer from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Pfizer from an “underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.50.

Institutional Trading of Pfizer

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Pfizer by 1,282.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 666,318 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $17,677,000 after acquiring an additional 618,117 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 18,766 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 2,087 shares in the last quarter. United Bank raised its stake in Pfizer by 12.4% during the second quarter. United Bank now owns 58,087 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,408,000 after purchasing an additional 6,415 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in Pfizer by 31.5% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 2,635,691 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $63,889,000 after purchasing an additional 631,523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Pfizer by 45.3% during the second quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 102,327 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,480,000 after purchasing an additional 31,896 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pfizer News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Pfizer this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA accepted Pfizer’s sNDA for TALZENNA plus XTANDI and granted Priority Review, increasing the odds of a faster label expansion in metastatic prostate cancer. FDA Grants Priority Review for Pfizer’s TALZENNA Plus XTANDI for the Treatment of Metastatic Prostate Cancer
• Positive Sentiment: Expanded use of TALZENNA in combination with XTANDI could support Pfizer’s oncology growth and add another revenue driver as the company works to offset declines in older products. PFE’s Talzenna sNDA Gets FDA Priority Tag in Wider Prostate Cancer Use
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are also watching Pfizer’s broader oncology pipeline and valuation, but this appears to be more of a long-term assessment than an immediate stock-moving event. Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Oncology Growth Faces A Major Valuation Test
• Negative Sentiment: Separate coverage highlighted expanded patent litigation risks tied to Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine business, which could create legal and operational uncertainty, though this is less immediate than the FDA catalyst. Pfizer (PFE) Faces Expanded Vaccine Lawsuits On A Fair Value Narrative That Still Sees Upside

Pfizer Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of PFE stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $25.02. The stock had a trading volume of 30,355,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 42,389,609. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.62 billion, a PE ratio of 19.10 and a beta of 0.35. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $25.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Pfizer has a 52-week low of $23.11 and a 52-week high of $28.75.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $14.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.84 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 11.83% and a return on equity of 19.44%. Pfizer’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. Pfizer has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.800-3.000 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Pfizer will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 24th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 131.30%.

About Pfizer

Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE) is a multinational biopharmaceutical company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1849 by Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and vaccines for human health. Its activities span discovery research, clinical development, regulatory affairs, manufacturing and global commercial distribution across multiple therapeutic areas.

Pfizer’s portfolio and pipeline cover oncology, immunology, cardiology, endocrinology, rare diseases, hospital acute care and anti-infectives, along with a substantial vaccine business.