Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 27.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,982 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 18,522 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $1,273,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PFE. Swedbank AB grew its position in Pfizer by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,745,831 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $166,284,000 after purchasing an additional 37,636 shares during the last quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Pfizer by 37.8% during the third quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 21,086 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 5,785 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Pfizer by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 18,865 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 1,238 shares in the last quarter. Hanlon Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Pfizer in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC raised its stake in Pfizer by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 25,102 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $726,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:PFE opened at $25.93 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $146.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. Pfizer Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.48 and a 1-year high of $31.54. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $26.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.27. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 19.47%. The business had revenue of $17.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.10 EPS. Pfizer’s quarterly revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. This is a positive change from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.63%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 121.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on PFE. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group cut their target price on Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pfizer has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock bought 19,457 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.65 per share, for a total transaction of $499,072.05. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $710,684.55. This trade represents a 235.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.