Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Shares Sold by Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 0.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 391,014 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,936 shares during the quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $10,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Pfizer by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 239,209,768 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,886,849,000 after buying an additional 11,099,024 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Pfizer during the 1st quarter worth about $172,902,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its position in Pfizer by 181.6% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 7,670,445 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $212,855,000 after acquiring an additional 4,947,000 shares in the last quarter. Ruffer LLP increased its stake in Pfizer by 248.7% during the fourth quarter. Ruffer LLP now owns 5,796,012 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $166,837,000 after purchasing an additional 4,133,786 shares during the period. Finally, FIL Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Pfizer by 97.1% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 7,582,518 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $218,301,000 after purchasing an additional 3,734,595 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pfizer Stock Performance

Shares of PFE stock opened at $29.27 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $29.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.13. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.20 and a 52-week high of $34.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $165.86 billion, a PE ratio of -487.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $13.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.96 billion. Pfizer had a negative net margin of 4.66% and a positive return on equity of 8.42%. Pfizer’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.74%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is presently -2,800.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays upped their price objective on Pfizer from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Pfizer from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $28.00 to $34.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Monday, September 9th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.54.

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.