Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Shares Purchased by OLD Republic International Corp

OLD Republic International Corp boosted its holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,614,700 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 190,000 shares during the period. OLD Republic International Corp’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $46,487,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Breed s Hill Capital LLC acquired a new position in Pfizer during the 4th quarter valued at about $216,000. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Pfizer by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 13,922 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 2,514 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its stake in Pfizer by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 9,306,192 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $267,925,000 after purchasing an additional 192,179 shares in the last quarter. Blume Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Blume Capital Management Inc. now owns 49,225 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 23,000 shares during the period. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 268,539 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,731,000 after buying an additional 4,543 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pfizer Stock Performance

PFE traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $28.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 10,017,610 shares, compared to its average volume of 43,217,629. The company’s 50-day moving average is $26.97 and its 200-day moving average is $28.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $158.72 billion, a PE ratio of -466.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.63. Pfizer Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.20 and a 52 week high of $40.37.

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

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.99%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -2,799.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on PFE. Argus cut shares of Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Pfizer from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Guggenheim began coverage on Pfizer in a report on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued 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 given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.00.

Pfizer Company 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.