Rockland Trust Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in Pfizer Inc. $PFE

Rockland Trust Co. cut its holdings in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 5.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 436,312 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 25,158 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $11,117,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Curio Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Pfizer by 36,600.0% in the second quarter. Curio Wealth LLC now owns 1,101 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098 shares during the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pfizer during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Pfizer during the second quarter worth $29,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in Pfizer in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Pfizer by 302.5% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,296 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 974 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pfizer Stock Performance

Shares of PFE opened at $27.05 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $25.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.11. The firm has a market cap of $153.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89 and a beta of 0.47. Pfizer Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.92 and a 12-month high of $27.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.09. Pfizer had a net margin of 12.42% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The firm had revenue of $17.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. Pfizer’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is 126.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PFE shares. UBS Group initiated coverage on Pfizer in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research lowered shares of Pfizer from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Pfizer in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Pfizer from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.06.

About Pfizer

Pfizer Inc (NYSE: PFE) is a multinational biopharmaceutical company headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1849 by Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and vaccines for human health. Its activities span discovery research, clinical development, regulatory affairs, manufacturing and global commercial distribution across multiple therapeutic areas.

Pfizer’s portfolio and pipeline cover oncology, immunology, cardiology, endocrinology, rare diseases, hospital acute care and anti-infectives, along with a substantial vaccine business.