Pfizer Inc. Expected to Earn FY2024 Earnings of $2.15 Per Share (NYSE:PFE)

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) – Investment analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Pfizer in a note issued to investors on Thursday, May 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst L. Chen now forecasts that the biopharmaceutical company will earn $2.15 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $2.05. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has a “Overweight” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Pfizer’s current full-year earnings is $2.39 per share.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on PFE. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $36.00 target price (up from $33.00) on shares of Pfizer in a report on Thursday. Argus lowered Pfizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Pfizer from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on Pfizer in a report on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pfizer presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.00.

Pfizer Stock Performance

Shares of Pfizer stock opened at $27.81 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $157.48 billion, a PE ratio of -463.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.63. Pfizer has a 52 week low of $25.20 and a 52 week high of $40.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $14.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.87 billion. Pfizer had a positive return on equity of 8.58% and a negative net margin of 0.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.04%. Pfizer’s dividend payout ratio is currently -2,799.53%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pfizer

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PFE. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Pfizer by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 239,209,768 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,886,849,000 after purchasing an additional 11,099,024 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Pfizer by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 104,246,432 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,985,783,000 after purchasing an additional 8,473,686 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Pfizer by 0.4% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 84,927,802 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,817,055,000 after purchasing an additional 348,628 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Pfizer during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,129,927,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in Pfizer by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 68,506,441 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,972,300,000 after purchasing an additional 8,298,920 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

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.