Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Sells 1,186 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,054 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,186 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $824,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. PSI Advisors LLC increased its stake in Pfizer by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 27,823 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $738,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 38,706 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,027,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 7,549 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $200,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Lipe & Dalton lifted its position in Pfizer by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Lipe & Dalton now owns 2,659 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beam Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Pfizer by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Beam Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 27,444 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $25.00 price target (down from $32.00) on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Pfizer from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.17.

Pfizer Price Performance

NYSE:PFE opened at $22.28 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $126.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $24.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.56. Pfizer Inc. has a one year low of $20.92 and a one year high of $31.54. 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) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $13.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.43 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 19.47%. Pfizer’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is 124.64%.

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.