Ruffer LLP Reduces Holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Key Points

• Ruffer LLP reduced its stake in Pfizer Inc. by 47.9% in Q1, holding approximately 2.1% of its portfolio in the company, making it the 10th largest position in Ruffer's investments.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, with an annualized yield of 7.3% and a payout ratio of 124.64%.
• A consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” is noted for Pfizer shares, with price targets ranging from $23.00 to $32.00 based on various analysts' assessments.

Ruffer LLP lowered its holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 47.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,192,298 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 2,014,089 shares during the period. Pfizer comprises about 2.1% of Ruffer LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Ruffer LLP's holdings in Pfizer were worth $55,552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PFE. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 856.8% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 20,053,828 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $508,164,000 after buying an additional 17,957,928 shares in the last quarter. Starboard Value LP acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $407,730,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 307.5% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 10,046,340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $254,574,000 after buying an additional 7,581,030 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 1,106.0% in the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 5,619,213 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $143,967,000 after buying an additional 5,153,257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 299.5% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,698,797 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $177,719,000 after buying an additional 5,021,915 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Berenberg Bank decreased their price target on shares of Pfizer from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Leerink Partners lowered their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $28.28.

Pfizer Trading Up 4.1%

NYSE PFE traded up $0.96 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $24.49. 26,344,102 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 45,299,414. Pfizer Inc. has a one year low of $20.92 and a one year high of $30.43. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.53. The stock has a market cap of $139.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $14.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.43 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 20.33%. Pfizer's revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, July 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 25th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio is currently 124.64%.

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.