Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Shares Down 2% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) were down 2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $24.72 and last traded at $24.93. Approximately 61,087,217 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 19% from the average daily volume of 51,485,266 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PFE. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Pfizer from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Pfizer presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.28.

Pfizer Trading Down 2.0%

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $24.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.08. Pfizer had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The company had revenue of $16.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.94 billion. Pfizer has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.000-3.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.9%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in Pfizer in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Curio Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 36,600.0% in the second quarter. Curio Wealth LLC now owns 1,101 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 1,098 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Pfizer during the first quarter worth $28,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new position in Pfizer during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Pfizer in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.