Howland Capital Management LLC Sells 14,218 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Key Points

• Howland Capital Management LLC reduced its Pfizer holdings by 22.7%, selling 14,218 shares, and now owns 48,283 shares worth approximately $1.22 million.
• Pfizer reported $0.92 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, but its quarterly revenue dropped 7.8% year-over-year to $13.72 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, yielding 7.4%, with a high dividend payout ratio of 124.64%.

Howland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 22.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,283 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 14,218 shares during the period. Howland Capital Management LLC's holdings in Pfizer were worth $1,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Gould Capital LLC raised its position in Pfizer by 97.2% during the fourth quarter. Gould Capital LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. North Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Pfizer Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE PFE traded up $0.20 on Friday, reaching $23.49. 51,287,529 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 38,018,180. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.58. The company has a market cap of $133.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.02, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.52. Pfizer Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.92 and a 12 month high of $31.32.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $13.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.43 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 20.33% and a net margin of 12.62%. Pfizer's revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 25th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 25th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.3%. Pfizer's payout ratio is 124.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PFE. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Pfizer from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Pfizer from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Citigroup upped their price objective on Pfizer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Berenberg Bank decreased their price objective on Pfizer from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Pfizer from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $28.28.

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.