Pfizer Inc. $PFE Shares Sold by Rockland Trust Co.

Rockland Trust Co. lessened its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 436,312 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 25,158 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $11,117,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Curio Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pfizer by 36,600.0% in the 2nd quarter. Curio Wealth LLC now owns 1,101 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098 shares during the period. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Pfizer during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in Pfizer in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Pfizer in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on PFE shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Pfizer from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Wolfe Research set a $24.00 target price on Pfizer and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Pfizer presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.06.

Pfizer Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of PFE stock opened at $27.05 on Tuesday. Pfizer Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.92 and a fifty-two week high of $27.69. The stock has a market cap of $153.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.89 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $17.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.93 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.42% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 23rd will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 126.47%.

About Pfizer

Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE) is a multinational biopharmaceutical company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1849 by Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and vaccines for human health. Its activities span discovery research, clinical development, regulatory affairs, manufacturing and global commercial distribution across multiple therapeutic areas.

Pfizer’s portfolio and pipeline cover oncology, immunology, cardiology, endocrinology, rare diseases, hospital acute care and anti-infectives, along with a substantial vaccine business.