Westchester Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Westchester Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 273,109 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 5,444 shares during the period. Pfizer makes up approximately 1.8% of Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $7,246,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PFE. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Pfizer by 102.8% in the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38,015 shares during the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

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

Pfizer Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of Pfizer stock opened at $26.00 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.19. The company has a market cap of $147.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.61. Pfizer Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.48 and a fifty-two week high of $31.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $17.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.26 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 19.47%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This is a boost from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 121.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFE has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.92.

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.