Principal Securities Inc. Buys 1,609 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,689 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,609 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $2,247,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Pfizer during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Pfizer by 102.8% in 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. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Joseph Group Capital Management grew 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 worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares during the period. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Pfizer in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. 68.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pfizer Price Performance

PFE opened at $25.50 on Tuesday. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $24.48 and a 52-week high of $31.54. The stock has a market cap of $144.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average of $26.28 and a 200 day moving average of $27.54. 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 (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 12.62%. The company had revenue of $17.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.26 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.10 EPS. Pfizer’s quarterly revenue was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.75%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is currently 121.99%.

Insider Activity

In other Pfizer news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock purchased 19,457 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.65 per share, with a total value of $499,072.05. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 27,707 shares in the company, valued at $710,684.55. The trade was a 235.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PFE. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Pfizer from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer has an average 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.