JGP Wealth Management LLC Sells 17,203 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

JGP Wealth Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 32.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,176 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 17,203 shares during the period. JGP Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PFE. Gladius Capital Management LP boosted 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 last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Pfizer in the second quarter worth $31,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new stake in Pfizer in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Joseph Group Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 168.3% during the third quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 1,229 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Pfizer during the 3rd quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.24 per share, for a total transaction of $28,240.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $282,400. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Pfizer in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Pfizer in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.00.

Pfizer Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PFE opened at $26.51 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $150.20 billion, a PE ratio of 35.82, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $26.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.01. Pfizer Inc. has a twelve month low of $24.48 and a twelve month high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.42. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 7.07%. The business had revenue of $17.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.17) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 6.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This is an increase from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 227.03%.

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.