Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Lowers Position in Pfizer Inc. $PFE

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 13.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 123,998 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 19,435 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $3,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 11.1% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 132,478 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,358,000 after buying an additional 13,228 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK raised its position in Pfizer by 1.2% during the first quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 1,413,472 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,817,000 after purchasing an additional 17,032 shares in the last quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the first quarter valued at about $8,283,000. Westbourne Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the first quarter valued at about $2,411,000. Finally, Bourne Lent Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Pfizer by 90.8% during the second quarter. Bourne Lent Asset Management Inc. now owns 38,255 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $927,000 after purchasing an additional 18,200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:PFE opened at $24.81 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $24.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.12. Pfizer Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.92 and a 12-month high of $29.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.20. Pfizer had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 16.84%.The firm had revenue of $14.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.43 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Pfizer has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.900-3.100 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.9%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup raised their price target on Pfizer from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Pfizer from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Bank of America raised their price target on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.35.

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.