40,700 Shares in Pfizer Inc. $PFE Acquired by North Star Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• North Star Asset Management acquired 40,700 Pfizer shares worth approximately $980,000 in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 68.36% of Pfizer’s outstanding stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $28.28; Pfizer recently traded near $27.95.
• Pfizer exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, but its $0.43 quarterly dividend—yielding about 6.2%—is under scrutiny because the payout ratio stands above 200%.

North Star Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 40,700 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $980,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Pfizer by 19.4% in the first quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,352 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Pfizer by 0.3% during the first quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 126,573 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,554,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Delta Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Delta Financial Advisors LLC now owns 25,266 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $709,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,430 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $235,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD now owns 41,919 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,177,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Pfizer from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a report on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Pfizer from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pfizer presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.28.

Key Pfizer News

Here are the key news stories impacting Pfizer this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Pfizer and BioNTech’s XFG-adapted 2026–2027 COMIRNATY vaccine for adults 65 and older and people ages 5–64 with underlying conditions that increase the risk of severe COVID-19. Shipments to U.S. pharmacies, hospitals and clinics are beginning immediately, supporting seasonal vaccine revenue and confirming Pfizer’s continuing role in infectious-disease prevention. Reuters FDA approval article
• Positive Sentiment: Pfizer and Valneva’s Lyme disease vaccine candidate, PF-07307405, reached an additional regulatory milestone after its European Marketing Authorization Application was validated. If approved, the product could help diversify Pfizer’s vaccine portfolio beyond COVID-19. Pfizer COVID and Lyme vaccine milestones article
• Neutral Sentiment: Pfizer announced several clinical-development updates, including an early-stage autoimmune trial for PF-08154225, a Phase 1 study evaluating easier injection delivery for tilrekimig, a tucatinib continuation study and a post-marketing Xalkori study. These programs may strengthen the pipeline, but they remain too early or incremental to affect near-term valuation. Pfizer pipeline update
• Negative Sentiment: The updated COVID vaccine is aimed at older and high-risk patients, creating a substantially smaller addressable market than broad-based vaccination campaigns. That limits the likely revenue lift even though approval and immediate distribution are favorable developments. Pfizer updated COVID shot article
• Negative Sentiment: BioNTech’s failed colorectal-cancer vaccine trial pressured sentiment across the mRNA sector. Pfizer was relatively insulated because the setback involves BioNTech’s oncology program rather than a Pfizer-specific clinical failure, but the broader result reinforces investor concerns about the limits of mRNA technology outside infectious disease. BioNTech colorectal cancer trial article
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary continues to question Pfizer’s dividend sustainability because its payout ratio exceeds 100% and much of the turnaround case depends on cost reductions and growth targets that do not begin meaningfully until later in the decade. These concerns can cap enthusiasm despite Pfizer trading near its 52-week high.

Pfizer Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of PFE opened at $27.95 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.78 and a beta of 0.34. Pfizer Inc. has a twelve month low of $23.58 and a twelve month high of $28.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.30.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.09. Pfizer had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 19.63%. The company had revenue of $15.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. Pfizer's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Pfizer has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.800-3.000 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.98 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 24th. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 226.32%.

Pfizer Company Profile

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.

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