First Financial Bank Trust Division Sells 22,966 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

First Financial Bank Trust Division lowered its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 196,991 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 22,966 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $5,226,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in PFE. Gladius Capital Management LP lifted its position in Pfizer by 102.8% during the 3rd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38,015 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new position in Pfizer in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Joseph Group Capital Management boosted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Pfizer during the 2nd quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of PFE stock traded up $0.08 during trading on Thursday, reaching $26.61. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 32,718,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 38,828,066. The company has a market cap of $150.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $26.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Pfizer Inc. has a one year low of $24.48 and a one year high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $17.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.17) earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.46%. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s payout ratio is presently 232.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Pfizer news, Director Scott Gottlieb purchased 1,000 shares of Pfizer 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 trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Pfizer in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.14.

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.