Essential Planning LLC. Acquires New Shares in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Essential Planning LLC. acquired a new stake in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 209,735 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $5,695,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 0.7% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,745,831 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $166,284,000 after buying an additional 37,636 shares during the last quarter. United Bank raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 3.7% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 35,599 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,030,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer during the third quarter valued at about $233,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer during the third quarter valued at about $198,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Pfizer in the third quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Pfizer Price Performance

PFE opened at $26.00 on Wednesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $26.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.73. Pfizer Inc. has a one year low of $24.48 and a one year high of $31.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.61.

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Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $17.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.26 billion. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 19.47%. The firm's revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.10 earnings per share. 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.62%. This is an increase from Pfizer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 121.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PFE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Pfizer from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $29.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $31.92.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock acquired 19,457 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.65 per share, with a total value of $499,072.05. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $710,684.55. The trade was a 235.84 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Pfizer

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.

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