Kestra Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Kestra Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,671 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 4,859 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $1,557,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFE. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Pfizer by 102.8% in the third quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,043 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 38,015 shares in the last quarter. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America purchased a new position in shares of Pfizer during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Joseph Group Capital Management grew its stake in Pfizer by 168.3% in the 3rd quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 1,229 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 771 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Pfizer in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Pfizer Stock Performance

NYSE PFE opened at $25.50 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.54. 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 stock has a market cap of $144.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.64. Pfizer Inc. has a twelve month low of $24.48 and a twelve month high of $31.54.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.15. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.62% and a return on equity of 19.47%. The company had revenue of $17.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. Pfizer’s revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a positive change from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 24th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 121.99%.

Insider Activity at Pfizer

In other news, Director Ronald E. Blaylock bought 19,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 $710,684.55. The trade was a 235.84 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Pfizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com lowered Pfizer from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup decreased 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. One 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. 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 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.