Advocate Group LLC Increases Stock Position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Advocate Group LLC boosted its holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 3.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 353,672 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,294 shares during the quarter. Pfizer comprises 1.6% of Advocate Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Advocate Group LLC's holdings in Pfizer were worth $8,962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer during the fourth quarter worth about $2,328,986,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Pfizer by 19.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 155,459,101 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $4,124,330,000 after acquiring an additional 25,315,159 shares during the period. Starboard Value LP purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $407,730,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $274,694,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 307.5% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 10,046,340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $254,574,000 after purchasing an additional 7,581,030 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PFE. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Pfizer from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $25.00 price target (down from $32.00) on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $29.17.

Pfizer Price Performance

Pfizer stock opened at $23.97 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $136.27 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.57. Pfizer Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.92 and a 52 week high of $31.54. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $23.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.25. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 20.33%. The company had revenue of $13.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.18%. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio is currently 124.64%.

Pfizer 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.

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