First Trust Advisors LP Boosts Stake in Pfizer Inc. $PFE

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 18,235,662 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 760,924 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Pfizer were worth $464,645,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Peak Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Pfizer by 1.4% in the second quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC now owns 28,768 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $697,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the period. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas grew its stake in shares of Pfizer by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 66,841 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,703,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Pfizer by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 12,915 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $329,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its stake in Pfizer by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 58,274 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Pfizer by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC now owns 27,955 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $712,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Pfizer from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Argus upgraded shares of Pfizer from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Daiwa Securities Group downgraded shares of Pfizer from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $27.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Pfizer from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on Pfizer in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Pfizer has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.05.

Key Pfizer News

Here are the key news stories impacting Pfizer this week:

• Positive Sentiment: China approved Pfizer’s GLP‑1 weight‑management drug (Xianweiying / ecnoglutide), opening a large new market for its obesity franchise and reinforcing Pfizer’s push into metabolic drugs — this expands addressable market and supports long‑term revenue potential. China approves Pfizer GLP-1 drug for weight management
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: Argus Research upgraded PFE to Buy and set a $35 target, citing progress in the GLP‑1 program and oncology pipeline — this can attract buy interest and boost sentiment among dividend and income investors. Argus Turns Bullish on Pfizer
• Positive Sentiment: Oncology wins: positive Phase 3 EV‑304 PADCEV results and FDA full approval for BRAFTOVI combinations were highlighted as re‑framing Pfizer’s long‑term growth prospects in oncology — supports diversification away from COVID revenues. Pfizer Obesity Nod In China And Cancer Wins
• Positive Sentiment: Pipeline expansion in China: Pfizer launched a Phase 1 heart‑failure candidate study in China, signaling continued local R&D investment that could yield future launches in a large market. Pfizer Adds New Early-Stage Heart Failure Candidate
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention & valuation debate: multiple articles note heightened retail/institutional interest and divergent valuation views (trending stock coverage, DCF vs. long‑term return debates) — increases volatility/volume but not a direct fundamental change. Pfizer Is a Trending Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Competition & generics risk for GLP‑1s: coverage notes Pfizer will face crowded competition (and price pressure risk) even as it gains approvals — a mixed commercial outlook. Weight-Loss Drug Approved in China — Up Against Generic Rivals
• Negative Sentiment: Structural headwinds remain: analysts reiterate risks from declining COVID revenues, upcoming patent expirations and U.S. drug‑pricing pressures (IRA) that could limit near‑term growth despite new launches. Can Pfizer Reignite Growth?
• Negative Sentiment: Policy/legal noise: a recent court ruling awarded Pfizer $29M in an SEC settlement dispute (one‑time benefit), but legal and policy developments remain sources of uncertainty for investors. Judge approves Pfizer, SEC settlement

Pfizer Price Performance

Shares of Pfizer stock opened at $27.07 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $153.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.90 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $26.30 and a 200 day moving average of $25.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Pfizer Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.92 and a 12 month high of $27.94.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.09. Pfizer had a return on equity of 20.48% and a net margin of 12.42%.The business had revenue of $17.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, January 23rd were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 126.47%.

Pfizer Company Profile

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.