Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 26.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,498 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 5,099 shares during the quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Pfizer during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Pfizer by 102.8% in the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38,015 shares during the period. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer during the second quarter worth $31,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in Pfizer during the third quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management boosted its holdings in Pfizer by 168.3% in the third quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 1,229 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pfizer Stock Performance

NYSE PFE opened at $26.79 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.92. The company has a market cap of $151.79 billion, a PE ratio of 36.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. Pfizer Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.48 and a 1-year high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 7.07% and a return on equity of 16.28%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.17) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is a boost from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 227.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PFE shares. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Pfizer from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Pfizer in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.92.

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.