Lincoln National Corp Trims Holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Lincoln National Corp decreased its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 134,971 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 6,008 shares during the period. Lincoln National Corp’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $3,886,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Pfizer during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Oak Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Pfizer by 29.7% in the 3rd quarter. Oak Asset Management LLC now owns 20,976 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $696,000 after buying an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. DMC Group LLC raised its position in Pfizer by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 23,939 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 864 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its stake in Pfizer by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 1,158,162 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $38,416,000 after acquiring an additional 35,484 shares during the period. Finally, Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc grew its stake in shares of Pfizer by 13.4% in the third quarter. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc now owns 68,765 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,281,000 after acquiring an additional 8,113 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of PFE stock traded down $0.39 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $27.78. 65,400,901 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,591,664. The firm has a market capitalization of $157.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -471.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.63. Pfizer Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.20 and a 12-month high of $40.37. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $26.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $14.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.87 billion. Pfizer had a positive return on equity of 8.58% and a negative net margin of 0.56%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. Pfizer’s payout ratio is -2,799.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Argus downgraded shares of Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Guggenheim initiated coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Pfizer from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 price target (up from $33.00) on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.00.

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.