Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Trading Down 1% – Here’s Why

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) fell 1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $26.42 and last traded at $26.45. 7,268,117 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 37,639,219 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.72.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PFE shares. Daiwa America raised shares of Pfizer from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup started coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com raised Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.92.

Pfizer Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.64. The firm has a market cap of $140.54 billion, a PE ratio of 33.51, a PEG 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 issued its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.92 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 7.07% and a return on equity of 16.28%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.17) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.77%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is 227.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pfizer

In other Pfizer news, Director Scott Gottlieb acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $282,400. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PFE. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Gladius Capital Management LP raised its position in Pfizer by 102.8% during the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38,015 shares in the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.