Pzena Investment Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Pfizer Inc. $PFE

Key Points

• Pzena Investment Management LLC modestly increased its stake in Pfizer by 0.9% during Q3, now holding 6,615,598 shares valued at approximately $168.6 million (about 0.12% of the company).
• Pfizer topped Q4 expectations with $0.66 EPS versus $0.57 and $17.56 billion in revenue versus $16.93 billion expected, and declared a $0.43 quarterly dividend (annualized $1.72) implying a 6.3% yield and a payout ratio of 126.47%.

Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,615,598 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 56,484 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned 0.12% of Pfizer worth $168,565,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1,282.4% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Pfizer by 12.5% in 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. United Bank raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 12.4% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 58,087 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,408,000 after buying an additional 6,415 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 9.4% during the second quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 19,945 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $483,000 after buying an additional 1,712 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. raised its stake in Pfizer by 67.3% during the 2nd quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 76,603 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 30,805 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on PFE. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Pfizer in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.00.

Pfizer Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of PFE stock opened at $27.41 on Thursday. Pfizer Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.92 and a 1 year high of $27.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $25.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.15 and a beta of 0.47.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.09. Pfizer had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 12.42%.The firm had revenue of $17.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd will be issued a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio is currently 126.47%.

Pfizer Company Profile

Pfizer Inc NYSE: PFE is a multinational biopharmaceutical company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1849 by Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and vaccines for human health. Its activities span discovery research, clinical development, regulatory affairs, manufacturing and global commercial distribution across multiple therapeutic areas.

Pfizer's portfolio and pipeline cover oncology, immunology, cardiology, endocrinology, rare diseases, hospital acute care and anti-infectives, along with a substantial vaccine business.

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