Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Buys 7,581,030 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 307.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,046,340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,581,030 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.18% of Pfizer worth $254,574,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer during the 4th quarter valued at $509,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Pfizer by 1,282.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 666,318 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $17,677,000 after purchasing an additional 618,117 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 18,766 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 2,087 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Pfizer during the 4th quarter worth about $2,281,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pfizer Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of Pfizer stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Thursday, reaching $24.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 20,271,182 shares, compared to its average volume of 40,995,610. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.92 and a 52-week high of $31.54. The firm's 50-day moving average is $22.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.98. The company has a market cap of $140.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.57.

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 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 19.47%. The business had revenue of $13.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 124.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PFE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Pfizer from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Pfizer in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $25.00 target price (down previously from $32.00) on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $29.17.

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.