WealthShield Partners LLC Purchases 1,251 Shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

WealthShield Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,944 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,251 shares during the quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $609,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 38,015 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in Pfizer in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management lifted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PFE opened at $26.67 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $151.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.92, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. Pfizer Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.48 and a 12 month high of $31.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $26.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.38.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $17.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.26 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 12.62%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.45%. Pfizer’s payout ratio is 121.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Pfizer from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Pfizer has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.92.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock purchased 19,457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $25.65 per share, for a total transaction of $499,072.05. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 27,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $710,684.55. This trade represents a 235.84 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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.