51,783 Shares in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) Bought by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 51,783 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,499,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Pfizer by 102.8% during the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38,015 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Pfizer during the second quarter worth $29,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Pfizer in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Pfizer during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new stake in Pfizer during the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Pfizer Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Pfizer stock opened at $25.37 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $143.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.31. Pfizer Inc. has a 12-month low of $24.48 and a 12-month high of $31.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a net margin of 7.07% and a return on equity of 16.28%. The company had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.92 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.17) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.78%. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 227.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $282,400. This represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Pfizer in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.43.

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.