Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Holdings Lowered by Maple Capital Management Inc.

Maple Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,519 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,861 shares during the period. Maple Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $465,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PFE. Swedbank AB lifted its stake in Pfizer by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,745,831 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $166,284,000 after acquiring an additional 37,636 shares in the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 44,909 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 2,361 shares in the last quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 32,274 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $934,000 after purchasing an additional 2,141 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the 3rd quarter worth about $83,000. Finally, Aspen Wealth Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 22.0% during the 3rd quarter. Aspen Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 10,207 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,843 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pfizer Stock Performance

PFE opened at $26.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $26.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Pfizer Inc. has a 12-month low of $24.48 and a 12-month high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $17.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.26 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 12.62%. The company’s revenue was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.51%. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 121.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock acquired 19,457 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.65 per share, for a total transaction of $499,072.05. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $710,684.55. The trade was a 235.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com downgraded Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.92.

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.