D.A. Davidson & CO. Has $49.12 Million Stock Position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 10.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,938,501 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 179,060 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $49,122,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Pfizer by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 518,535,151 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $13,756,738,000 after buying an additional 2,285,276 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Pfizer by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 120,589,782 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,190,131,000 after acquiring an additional 2,923,537 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Pfizer in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,328,986,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 76,502,238 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,029,604,000 after acquiring an additional 5,350,381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 58,382,560 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,548,889,000 after acquiring an additional 4,167,222 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pfizer Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE:PFE opened at $25.32 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Pfizer Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.92 and a 12-month high of $31.54. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $143.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.58.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $13.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.43 billion. Pfizer had a return on equity of 20.33% and a net margin of 12.62%. The company’s revenue was down 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, July 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 25th. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 124.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on PFE shares. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Pfizer in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised Pfizer to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Pfizer from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $25.00 price target (down previously from $32.00) on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.17.

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.