Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Stake Lessened by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Pfizer Inc. by 7.0%, holding approximately 3,532,285 shares worth $89.48 million following the sale of 266,185 shares.
• Pfizer reported $0.78 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst estimates by $0.20, with revenue of $14.65 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.43, providing an annualized dividend yield of 7.0%, with a current dividend payout ratio of 91.49%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 7.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,532,285 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 266,185 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of Pfizer worth $89,480,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PFE. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 856.8% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 20,053,828 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $508,164,000 after purchasing an additional 17,957,928 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the first quarter worth $389,861,000. Starboard Value LP purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the fourth quarter worth $407,730,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 51.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 26,456,457 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $670,407,000 after acquiring an additional 9,041,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 7,581,030 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Pfizer Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:PFE opened at $24.64 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $140.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.52. The stock's 50-day moving average is $24.49 and its 200-day moving average is $24.47. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.92 and a 52-week high of $30.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $14.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.43 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 16.84%. The firm's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share 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 $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 25th. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PFE. Leerink Partners cut their price objective on Pfizer from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Pfizer from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Pfizer from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Pfizer from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $28.12.

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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