Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) Trading Down 3.8% – Time to Sell?

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)’s share price dropped 3.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $24.48 and last traded at $25.04. Approximately 58,602,102 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 55% from the average daily volume of 37,886,434 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on PFE. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Pfizer from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $28.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI raised Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays upped their price target on Pfizer from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Pfizer in a report on Friday, October 25th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.92.

Pfizer Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $140.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.84, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.67. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $28.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The firm had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.92 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.17) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 227.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pfizer

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb acquired 1,000 shares of Pfizer stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $282,400. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pfizer

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PFE. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 102.8% during the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38,015 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Pfizer during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

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.