Blueshift Asset Management LLC Increases Position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 51.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,001 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,235 shares during the quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $1,389,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Gladius Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Pfizer by 102.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38,015 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in Pfizer during the second quarter worth $34,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.92.

Pfizer Stock Performance

PFE opened at $25.76 on Wednesday. Pfizer Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.48 and a 1-year high of $31.54. The company has a market capitalization of $145.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $28.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.54. 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, beating 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 business had revenue of $17.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.17) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is presently 227.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Scott Gottlieb acquired 1,000 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.24 per share, with a total value of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now 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 purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.