Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Has $2.17 Million Stock Position in Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

by · The Cerbat Gem

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. cut its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE – Free Report) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,443 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the period. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $2,171,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Pfizer during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Steward Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer in the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Pfizer by 179.3% in the second quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. 68.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pfizer Trading Up 0.4 %

Pfizer stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $28.43. 31,327,018 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 39,936,395. The company has a quick ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.25. Pfizer Inc. has a twelve month low of $25.76 and a twelve month high of $45.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.60.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 31st. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.32) by $0.15. Pfizer had a return on equity of 16.72% and a net margin of 15.30%. The firm had revenue of $13.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.77 billion. Research analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Pfizer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 26th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 25th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.91%. This is a boost from Pfizer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. TheStreet downgraded Pfizer from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Pfizer from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $38.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, October 16th. TD Cowen cut Pfizer from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $32.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Pfizer from $44.00 to $33.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 16th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.22.

Read Our Latest Analysis on Pfizer

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Scott Gottlieb purchased 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $26.47 per share, with a total value of $79,410.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 9,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $238,230. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Pfizer Profile

(Free Report)

Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular metabolic, migraine, and women's health under the Eliquis, Nurtec ODT/Vydura, and the Premarin family brands; infectious diseases with unmet medical needs under the Prevnar family, 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.

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