Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Shares Up 0.7% - Should You Buy?

Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) traded up 0.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $25.58 and last traded at $25.66. 6,768,297 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 37,329,668 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.47.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a report on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.92.

Pfizer Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $26.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $27.56. The company has a market capitalization of $144.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $17.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.26 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 12.62%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.75%. This is a positive change from Pfizer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 121.99%.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock acquired 19,457 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.65 per share, for a total transaction of $499,072.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at $710,684.55. The trade was a 235.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PFE. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 17.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 1,820,731 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $52,692,000 after buying an additional 266,167 shares during the period. Swedbank AB boosted its position in Pfizer by 0.7% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,745,831 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $166,284,000 after buying an additional 37,636 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Pfizer by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 109,428 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,167,000 after purchasing an additional 2,914 shares in the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Pfizer by 41.7% in the 3rd quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,576 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 4,878 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Pfizer by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 31,692 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.