Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Buys 10,986 Shares of Pfizer Inc. $PFE

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Pfizer Inc. by 4.1%, acquiring an additional 10,986 shares, bringing its total holdings to 276,125 shares valued at approximately $6.69 million.
• Pfizer recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, representing a 6.8% annualized yield with a dividend payout ratio of 91.49%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Pfizer's stock with a consensus rating of "Hold" and average price target of $28.41, while some firms have adjusted their target prices for the stock.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 4.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 276,125 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,986 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Pfizer were worth $6,693,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 2.9% in the second quarter. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,542 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 388 shares during the period. Citizens National Bank Trust Department lifted its position in Pfizer by 0.9% during the second quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 46,103 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,118,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co of the South lifted its position in Pfizer by 1.5% during the second quarter. Trust Co of the South now owns 29,386 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $712,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Charter Oak Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Pfizer by 4.3% during the second quarter. Charter Oak Capital Management LLC now owns 10,663 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in Pfizer by 0.5% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 93,228 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,260,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Pfizer Price Performance

Shares of Pfizer stock opened at $25.22 on Friday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $24.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.14. Pfizer Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.92 and a 52 week high of $30.08. The company has a market capitalization of $143.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.41, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.20. Pfizer had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 16.84%.The business had revenue of $14.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Pfizer has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.900-3.100 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.8%. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on PFE. Wall Street Zen downgraded Pfizer from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, September 28th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Pfizer from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Pfizer from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.41.

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.

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