Altshuler Shaham Ltd Sells 7,179,841 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Altshuler Shaham Ltd decreased its stake in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) by 98.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 98,236 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 7,179,841 shares during the period. Pfizer makes up 0.2% of Altshuler Shaham Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Altshuler Shaham Ltd's holdings in Pfizer were worth $2,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Pfizer during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Oak Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 29.7% in the 3rd quarter. Oak Asset Management LLC now owns 20,976 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $696,000 after acquiring an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. DMC Group LLC increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 3.7% in the third quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 23,939 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $794,000 after acquiring an additional 864 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Pfizer by 3.2% during the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 1,158,162 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $38,416,000 after acquiring an additional 35,484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc grew its stake in Pfizer by 13.4% in the third quarter. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc now owns 68,765 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,281,000 after purchasing an additional 8,113 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Pfizer Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of PFE stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $28.20. The stock had a trading volume of 47,806,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 43,591,230. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $26.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $159.66 billion, a PE ratio of -469.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.63. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.20 and a 52-week high of $40.37.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.26. Pfizer had a negative net margin of 0.56% and a positive return on equity of 8.58%. The business had revenue of $14.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.96%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -2,799.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PFE shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Pfizer from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Argus cut Pfizer from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Guggenheim began coverage on Pfizer in a report on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $36.00 price target (up from $33.00) on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $36.00.

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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