Norges Bank Makes New $2.33 Billion Investment in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 87,786,882 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $2,328,986,000. Norges Bank owned 1.55% of Pfizer at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PFE. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 155,459,101 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,124,330,000 after buying an additional 25,315,159 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Pfizer in the fourth quarter valued at about $274,694,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 22.4% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 38,068,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,101,713,000 after acquiring an additional 6,977,587 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Pfizer by 79.5% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,148,116 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $295,760,000 after purchasing an additional 4,938,209 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 28.5% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 21,286,805 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $564,739,000 after purchasing an additional 4,726,549 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on PFE. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Pfizer to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.92.

Pfizer Stock Performance

Pfizer stock traded up $0.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $25.20. 32,322,049 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 39,037,478. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $26.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.92. The firm has a market cap of $142.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.00. Pfizer Inc. has a 52 week low of $24.48 and a 52 week high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 12.62%. The business had revenue of $17.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.10 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock purchased 19,457 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.65 per share, for a total transaction of $499,072.05. Following the purchase, the director now owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $710,684.55. This represents a 235.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

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.